Stranger Across the Dance Floor
by TurningPageFiction
Summary: HIATUS: Jasper is visiting his cousin on New Year's Eve when he runs into the last person he'd expect to find. What happened after their passionate night together? And how will they ring in the New Year? Continution of "Stranger on Horseback" AH/AU/OOC Rated M.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all things Twilight related. I just get to have fun with them. Although if I could, I'd totally own Jasper and Emmett.**

Summary: Jasper is visiting his cousin in Austin, TX on New Year's Eve. He runs into the last person he'd expect to find; Bella. What happened after their passionate night together? And how will they ring in the New Year? AH/AU/OOC. Rated M for a reason. **Continuation of my one-shot "Stranger on Horseback." Read that first please! Important Author's Note at the bottom! Enjoy!**

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**JPOV- December 31****st****- 10:00pm**

"Are you sure you don't mind coming to Charlotte's New Year's party?" my cousin Peter asked me for the thousandth time since I got here an hour ago. I was organizing my things in his guest bedroom and had just gotten changed for the party that was about to get underway.

Peter was a grad student at UT-Austin and he had an apartment near campus with his girlfriend, Charlotte. He was 24, three years younger than me, but we've been as close as brothers ever since we were kids on the ranch back in Mustang Ridge. He had been so busy with school and his job as a grad assistant in the English department that we hadn't been able to see each other in a long time and New Year's was the best time for the both of us. Charlotte loved throwing parties so in turn, my attendance was required, but I didn't mind.

"It's no problem, don't worry," I assured him, "It's New Years Eve, let's enjoy it."

"Maybe we can finally get you a woman," Peter smirked, "Must be awfully lonely back home on the ranch."

"Nah man, I'm not ready for that," I said shaking my head.

"When are ya going to tell us about this mystery woman man?" Peter questioned, "In fact, you've never even said that there even was a woman, but I know you Jasper."

He was right, but I tried not to let him know it. I never told anyone about the one that got away. She disappeared on me after a night filled with passion and tenderness. I haven't seen her since, but there is not a moment that goes by that my mind is not on her. Her sweet voice, the feel of her body against mine, her adorable laugh…I was completely hooked on her.

But none of that matters anymore. I woke up to find my bed empty four months ago, every trace of her gone except for her scent on my bed sheets. I knew her name and I knew where she worked in Austin, at the university, but something inside was keeping me from tracking her down. She obviously left for a reason that morning, obviously wanting nothing more from me. I wouldn't bother her by looking for her.

"Just drop it man," I pleaded, "I'm here to have fun tonight."

"Alright," he acquiesced; still not looking entirely convinced that I was alright, "Let's go ring in the New Year!"

We exited the room and were surprised to see that a good amount of people had already arrived. We headed over to Charlotte who was standing behind the kitchen counter which was acting as the bar for the night.

"May I just say that you are looking beautiful tonight ma'am," I told Charlotte as she smiled. She and Peter had been together for three years and they were absolutely perfect together.

"Good lord, Jasper, I'm surprised that accent of yours doesn't have women falling at your feet," she teased. She was originally from North Carolina so our Texas twangs still surprised her sometimes.

"You mean like you did with me?" Peter joked back.

"Sure honey," she smiled, giving him light peck on the lips. The love between them was so strong it was almost hard to watch sometimes. I turned away from the counter and people watched for a while. There were pretty of attractive women here but I didn't _feel_ attracted to any of them.

They just simply weren't her. I'd never felt this way for a woman in my life. It was like I _had_ to know her. I don't think I would ever forget the night we had together as long as I live.

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**Still JPOV- Later that night, around 11:00pm**

The party was in full swing and I was nursing my second Jack and Coke on the outskirts of the crowd. The music was blaring and everyone was dancing in the middle of the room. I know it probably looked odd; me just standing in the corner not socializing with anyone, but I was content to just watch. I already politely turned down a handful of girls asking for a dance.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the door to the apartment open and close. It was as if someone had set my body on fire, ever nerve on my body was hyper-aware of everything. I caught a flash of deep brown locks amongst the crowd and my heart stopped. _No, it couldn't be could it?_ However, the crowd was so thick; there was no way I could get through to see for myself.

"Having fun man?" Peter yelled over the music suddenly. I hadn't even noticed him approach me. He was trying and failing at dancing along with the music, so I definitely knew he was feeling buzzed.

"Yeah, I am," I told him, hoping he couldn't tell that it wasn't the whole truth.

"Hey so listen there's someone I want you to meet," he said, clapping me on the shoulder.

"I don't know Peter…," I trailed off.

"Ah come on Jasper," he said, "No pressure. She's just someone I work with at school. She's professor in my department and I'm working as her grad assistant this year. I've been bugging her all week about my favorite cousin coming to stay with me."

I was imagining a middle-aged cat lady, and I was curious as to why someone like that would be interested in coming to her grad assistant's New Year's Eve party. It wouldn't hurt just to be nice and say hello to appease Peter.

"Sure, alright, let's go say hello," I said, and immediately I was being pulled through the crowd. How Peter and Charlotte fit all of these people in here I'll never know.

We came to a stop behind Charlotte and another woman and my pulse instantly quickened. The woman had her back to be but she had dark reddish brown hair that fell in waves down to the middle of her back. Peter tapped her shoulder and she turned to face us.

"Hey Peter," she said, not looking at me yet but I was freaking out on the inside.

"Professor I'd like you to meet my cousin, Jasper Whitlock," Peter said motioning towards me. As soon as my name fell from his lips, her eyes widened and she sucked in a breath. Slowly she turned towards me and our eyes locked.

"Jasper…" she said, her voice merely a whisper due to the music playing. Her face displayed several different emotions; shock, nervousness, longing, and something else I couldn't quite place.

"Bella…" I almost whispered, it had been so long since I had spoken her name.

"You two know each other?" I heard Charlotte ask, and I reluctantly broke our gaze to see that she and Peter were watching us with confused expressions on their faces. Bella recovered first.

"Oh, um, we met awhile back," she answered vaguely. A higher power was looking out for us as the song changed to "I Like It" by Enrique Iglesias and Charlotte let out a squeal.

"Oh baby I love this song! Come dance with me!" she pulled him off to the dance floor leaving Bella and I alone.

"We should talk," I stated, and she nodded. I lightly grabbed her wrist to lead her away and I was instantly hit with the warmth I had grown so accustomed to feeling that night. I let out a soft sigh at the familiarity.

I led her gently through the crowd until we reached my guest bedroom. We walked in and I locked the door behind us, we didn't need anyone barging in on us right now. I turned back to face her and Bella was sitting on the bed, fidgeting and looking everywhere but at me.

"So you of all people are working at the university with my cousin, huh?" I stated, and she looked up at me finally.

"Ironic, right?" she replied, "You look good."

"So do you," I answered, which was a massive understatement. She looked breathtaking. I ran my eyes down her and was extremely pleased at what I saw. She was wearing a skintight deep blue strapless dress than clung to her in all the right places. And I'll be damned if she wasn't wearing the hottest pair of fuck me heels I had ever seen.

"How've you been?" she asked shyly.

"Miserable," I answered almost immediately.

Her eyes caught mine once more and I held our gaze as she asked, "Why?"

I ran my hand threw my messy locks and sighed, "I don't know Bella, maybe I'm still a little distraught over the girl that I spent one of the best nights of my life with disappearing without a reason."

She gasped and her eyes widened at my outburst, but I continued.

"It must have taken you a lot of effort to disappear like that huh? I mean the shop that had your car was a good mile or so down the road. You actually would have rather walked all that way on foot than wake up next to me? I mean damn Bella was it that terrible for you?"

Bella's eyes were filled with tears and her shoulders were shaking with silent sobs. "I sw- swear, that wasn't it at all…"

"Then what was it?"

"I was scared!" she suddenly exclaimed, her voice thick with tears. I felt myself calm a little at the sight of her so broken.

"Why darlin? What had you so scared? Was it something I did?" I pleaded with her, sitting on the bed next to her, turning her to face me.

"No, no, no, you were perfect," she assured me, as I detected a smile somewhere under all those tears, "That night with you was one of the best I've ever had."

"Then why did you leave?"

"It was the perfect-ness of it all that had me freaked," she admitted, "I had known you all of a few hours and I was feeling things for you that I had never felt for anyone before."

I reached over and brushed some hair out of her face and held her in my hand, my thumb lazily stroking her cheek, "Darlin', I wish you would have told me. I would have told you that I was feeling all of the same things."

"You were?" she asked sounding surprised.

"Of course. I'm not a one night stand kind of man. That night happened because I felt this undeniable intense connection to you. I was just as freaked as you."

"But why me? I mean I'm nothing…"

Bella never finished her sentence as my lips crashed down on hers. Her lips molded against mine in the same perfect way they did all those months ago. She opened her mouth slightly and my tongue found its way to hers. We made out like that for a few minutes but I reluctantly pulled away before it could go further. We were both breathing heavy and Bella's lips were swollen. I smiled that it was me who made her react this way.

"Now let me tell you something right now darlin'. You are not 'nothing.' You are beautiful, sweet, smart…every inch of you is perfection to me. Anyone who considers you less than that is obviously an idiot."

Bella smiled up at me and whispered, "I've never felt this way before. It's like I was meant to be broken down by your ranch, like I was supposed to meet you."

My heart swelled to twice its size at her admission and I instantly knew that what I was feeling was true.

"I'm so glad you feel that way baby. I feel the exact same way."

"You do?" she asked and I nodded.

Her eyes filled with tears once more, but this time she flung herself at me. Her arms wrapped tightly around me as she kissed every inch of my face and neck. She pulled back and placed a soft peck on my lips. Neither of us were holding back and soon Bella was underneath me as I hovered above her kissing her senseless.

Her soft moans only spurred me on that much more.

"Jas, Jasper," she whimpered.

"Yes darlin'?" I asked, nibbling her ear. Once again I was rewarded another beautiful moan from this beautiful woman before me.

"I want, no I need," she said, "I need you to touch me."

"Are you sure baby?"

"Of course Jasper," she said stroking my face and brushing a curl out of my face, "I've made the mistake of walking away from you once before, I'm not making it again. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere. I want you."

"I want you too, but I don't think this party is the right place for that," I said regrettably.

"You're right," she sighed, "We could go to my place? My apartment isn't too far away."

"Sounds perfect to me darlin'," I smiled, kissing the tip of Bella' nose, "Let me grab some clothes to bring with me."

I felt Bella's gaze on me as I quickly moved around the room and when I had everything I needed, I scooped her up in my arms and crushed my lips to hers. We broke apart, panting and breathless with lust and desire.

"Ready to get out of here?" I asked her softly, feeling her shiver as my breath washed over her.

"God, yes," she gasped, gripping my hand in hers, nearly dragging me out of the apartment and down to her truck.

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About 15 minutes later, we pulled into the parking garage of the building where Bella lived.

"You really do live nearby, don't you," I acknowledged and she smiled as she pulled into an open parking spot. Once we were out of the truck, Bella grabbed my hand once more and led me inside of her building. We silently stepped into the elevator and held each other close we climbed the five floors to get to her apartment. Once inside, I barely had a moment to look around at the space when Bella spun me around and had me against the wall kissing me passionately. I instantly felt myself harden with arousal and Bella moaned at the feeling of it between our bodies. I pulled my lips from hers and trailed them down her jawline and along her naked collarbone.

"Jesus, baby," she moaned, running her fingers through my hair, "I need you."

"All in due time darlin'," I whispered, "Bedroom?"

Bella slipped her arms around my neck and jumped up, wrapping her legs around my waist. My hands immediately went to her ass to hold her against me and she ground her center into my cock.

"Down the hall, last door on the right," she spoke in my ear.

My legs carried us swiftly down the hall and over to her large bed in the center of the bedroom. Laying her down gently, I placed my weight on my arms, and hovered my body over hers.

Kissing her gently on the lips once more, I leaned back to pull my shirt over my head. I threw it across the room as Bella's small hands ran up and down my chest.

"So gorgeous…" I heard her mumble.

"Can you sit up for me darlin?" I asked, unzipping her dress when she did. She laid back down and I slowly pulled her dress away from her body. I became impossibly harder at what I found beneath the fabric.

Bella's perfect breasts were encased a sultry black strapless bra and she was wearing a matching black lace thong.

"So beautiful…" I whispered against her lips. Bella reached out to unbutton my pants and when her hand brushed against my cock as she pushed them down along with my boxers, it was my turn to let out a groan.

I removed them the rest of the way and Bella reached out for my hand, pulling me back down to her. Bella pushed me back so that I was lying on my back on the bed. She straddled my waist and my stiff cock was pressed against her ass. She leaned forward and kissed my neck, sucking gently.

"Mmm Bella…" I moaned.

Bella didn't say a word as she repositioned herself over me. She gave me a sly look through her eyelashes and I felt my control crumbling away. Before I could register what was happening, I felt her small hand wrapped around the base of my cock.

"Oh my god, baby!" I cried out as she pumped me a few times before taking me into her mouth.

The feel of Bella's warm mouth around me, sucking and licking, was unlike anything I had ever experienced. I quickly felt myself getting closer to release, but that wasn't how I want things to play out.

"Bella darlin', you have to stop," I told her.

Her eyes snapped up to mine, "Why? Is it not good for you?" she asked self-consciously.

"It's amazing baby, but I want to finish inside you."

"Don't worry honey," she told me, pumping me once more and giving me a devilish grin, "We'll have plenty of time for that."

I was inside her mouth once more and I was racing towards release. I felt myself hit the back of her throat while she reached down to cup my balls and I unloaded my seed down her throat, shouting her name as I came.

I moved to sit up in order to remove Bella's undergarments, but she forcefully pushed me back down. Seductively, she slowly removed her bra, followed by her panties. Completely naked for me, I flipped us over so that I was hovering over her once more.

"You're so beautiful my sweetheart," I told her softly, reaching between us to glide my fingers over her slick folds, "Never has a woman affected me the way you do. You're everything to me Bella, everything."

Bella smiled sweetly up at me, breathing heavy as I slipped a finger inside her.

I slipped another inside her and she let out a scream. I pumped my fingers in and out of her wet heat, curling them upwards. Leaning down I sucked her clit into my mouth and a string of profanities jumbled together fell from her lips.

Using my tongue and fingers together to bring her to her own release, moments later her walls clamped down on my fingers as she came. I watched in awe as she came down from her high. This gorgeous creature was going to be all mine. I would make sure of it.

"Shit, Jasper," she gasped.

I moved back up so we were eye to eye, my hard cock positioned at her entrance.

"I can't believe I found you again," I murmured, running a hand over Bella's hair and cupping her face.

"I'm not going anywhere. I made a mistake leaving you before, but I don't think I could bear doing it again. I'm yours for as long as you'll have me," she replied, "But I need you inside me."

Intertwining our fingers together, I slowly pushed myself inside of her until I was fully sheathed. The sensation was overwhelming. I let her adjust to my size until she nodded for me to continue.

I pulled almost all the way before slamming back into her. The only sounds in the room were the sounds of skin hitting skin and our moans.

I set a steady pace for us, Bella's hip raising up and meeting me thrust for thrust. This was slow, passionate love-making and after being without her for four months I was making this last.

Soon, our bodies were slick with sweat, our breathing ragged and heavy.

"Are you close baby? I'm so close," Bella sighed, her walls pulsating around me.

Outside, on some of the neighboring apartments' balconies the residents suddenly grew quiet before the chanting started.

"_10, 9, 8,…"_

"Oh god Jasper," she moaned as she grew even closer to the edge.

"Mmm Bella, so good, unngh…"

"_7, 6, 5, 4…"_

"I'm gonna…Oh shit, Jazz, I'm going to cum!" she shouted.

"Come for me baby, let go," I coaxed.

"_3, 2, 1! HAPPY NEW YEAR!"_

"Oh God Jasper! Shit, oh, Damnit!" Bella yelled as her pussy clamped down around my dick.

I soon followed suit, shooting my release into her shouting my own mixture of words and moans.

As we recovered from our highs, I pulled out of Bella, immediately aware of the loss of contact. Pulling her to me, and curving my body around hers, I reached for the blanket on the end of the bed to cover us.

Tenderly kissing her shoulder I held her tight, not wanting her to be anywhere but pressed up against me. I still felt as if I were dreaming, like I would blink and she would disappear again.

"Happy New Year Jasper," she said softly.

"Happy New Year Bella."

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**A/N: Welcome to my brand new story, _Stranger Across the Dancefloor_! Just so you all are aware, this is a continuation of a one-shot on my profile so go check that out! Also, please be aware that I will not be updating this story until December 31st! That's not to be cruel, I just want to have more chapters pre-written so that after **December 31st**, I will be able to post on a regular schedule! So PLEASE, if you enjoy what you've read so far, please add this story to your alerts so that you can be updated when chapter two is posted!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all things Twilight related. I just get to have fun with them. Although if I could, I'd totally own Jasper, Emmett, and Jacob.**

**Happy (almost) New Year! If all goes well, I will be updating this story every Saturday, but don't shoot me if I occasionally have to skip a week. I am in college after all. Enjoy!**

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**Chapter Two**

**BPOV- The Next Morning**

I woke up to find a trickle of sunlight peeking in through a crack in the blinds, and I blinked a few times. A pair of strong arms were wrapped around me and I was pressed tightly up against the body attached.

I smiled as last night's events came rushing back. I rolled myself over so that I was facing Jasper and I lightly traced his face with my hand. He looked so peaceful and angelic lying there asleep I didn't want to disturb him, but I needed to see his piercing blue eyes looking back into mine.

I brushed his hair out of his face and placed feather soft kisses on his eyes, forehead, nose, cheeks, and then finally his mouth. He was starting to stir and his arms tightened around me.

"Mmm, good morning beautiful," he murmured, his voice thick and layered with sleep.

"Good morning Jasper," I said, pressing myself to him. I want to melt into him. I lie motionless, savoring the feeling of his body against mine. I'm afraid to breathe in case I break the spell.

"Is this a dream?" Jasper whispered with his eyes still closed. He ran his hands down my side, ghosting over the side of my breast and down over my hip bone, "Or maybe this is heaven, because surely I can't be experiencing something this perfect on Earth."

I pressed my lips to his neck and smiled, "I'm here honey, I'm real."

He slowly opened his eyes and gazed down at me. I was rewarded with a smile that took my breath away, "Bella…"

Jasper crushed his lips to mine and rolled us over so that he was hovering over my body, his weight balanced on his strong forearms. Our tongues were tangled together as were our legs as we kissed passionately.

He ground his hips into mine and I let out an embarrassing moan as I felt his obvious arousal.

We made out like a couple of teenagers for what seemed like hours, until we were interrupted by our obviously hungry stomachs. I felt as if I needed a cold shower constantly when I was around Jasper.

"Would you like some breakfast?" I asked him.

"You don't have to go to any trouble darlin'."

"It's no trouble at all," I assured him, giving him a quick peck before rolling out of bed. I walked over to my dresser and slipped on one of my oversized t-shirts. I turned back to the bed where Jasper was sitting up, watching my movements with a slight pout on his face. I laughed and came back to sit on the edge.

"I can't very well cook without any clothes on baby," I told him with a smile, "No pouting."

Jasper sighed adorably and got out of bed as well. I shamelessly ogled his flawless form as he rummaged around for a pair of boxers.

"Let's go whip up something to eat," Jasper told me, "Before I throw you back on this bed and ravage you all morning."

I shivered at his words, but managed to lead him into the kitchen. I immediately began pulling out ingredients for omelets, setting everything out on the countertop.

"Do you need me to do help with anything?" Jasper asked, looking positively sinful, leaning against my counter.

"Nah, I'm good, but thank you though," I smiled. I got to work and about 10 minutes later, things were pretty much prepared. Jasper poured us both glasses of orange juice and we sat and ate our food across from each other at the table, occasionally exchanging glances at the other.

"I'll wash up the dishes, if you want to go grab a shower or something," Jasper offered as I began to clear our plates when we were finished eating.

"Thanks baby," I smiled, giving him a quick kiss on the lips, "I'll be out in a sec."

I walked back into my bedroom and eyed the pile of jumbled bedding at the end of the mattress with a smile. Jasper really was an amazing lover and I know I was a complete idiot to have walked away from him all those months ago.

Grabbing a clean towel from my closet I stepped into my en suite bathroom and removed my t-shirt before turning on the water in the shower, getting it to the perfect temperature.

Stepping in, I relished in the way the warm water made my body feel. I stood under the spray of the shower head for a few moments letting the water cascade down my body. Finally, I grabbed my shampoo and lathered up my hair before rinsing and repeated with conditioner. Next, I shaved all areas that needed to be shaved before grabbing my loofah and body wash, washing every inch of my body. I loved how it made my skin smell and feel afterwards. Rinsing off, I turned off the water and reached for my towel on the rack outside the shower, but was shocked to realize it was no longer there. Looking around, my eyes fell on the doorway and I gasped at what I saw.

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**JPOV**

As Bella went back to take a shower, I gathered up our dirty dishes and deposited them in the sink to wash. Letting the sink fill up with a little soapy water, I quickly wiped down the tabletop and stovetops as well. There weren't that many dirty dishes so I was finished pretty quickly, so I walked back into Bella's bedroom to retrieve my cell phone from my pants pocket. I sighed as I heard the shower running.

I was dying to join her in the shower, but I refrained. Checking my cell, I wasn't surprised to see that I had numerous texts and missed calls from Peter and Charlotte. They were all pretty much the same; wondering where I had disappeared to and why I never came home.

Dialing Peter, the phone rang a few times before he picked up.

"Hey man," he answered.

"Hey."

"Where did you disappear to last night? Charlotte was getting worried. Did you meet someone?"

"Sort of…," I trailed off, "It's kind of complicated."

"You know it's funny, Bella disappeared right around the same time you did. Funny coincidence, huh?" he teased. The fucker. How he always seemed to pick up on things I'll never know.

"What do you know, cousin?" I asked, cautiously.

"I don't know the history man, but a blind man could see the chemistry between you two. It was just a feeling really. It seemed like you both had met before," he explained.

"Well we have met before, but it's a kind of complicated story. I'll explain everything when I see you. Speaking of, how about the four of us go out to dinner later?" I suggested.

"Sounds good to me, just text me later with the location," Peter replied, "Later man. You sound happy, Jasper. I don't know what's going on with you and Bella, but you just sound different."

"Thanks, man. See you later." I said before hanging up. It was crazy to me how Peter was able to pick up on a change in me, just by the tone of my voice. But honestly, since reuniting with Bella last night, I felt as if a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. Bella was one of the best surprises to stumble into my life and I'd be damned if I was going to let her go again.

Walking over and peeking into the bathroom, I immediately grew hard at the sight of Bella's naked form through the shower door. She had her back to me, and I shamelessly ogled her perfect ass and legs. Feeling a little playful, I stealthily stole her towel from the rack and partially hid by the door. Moments later, she turned the water off and reached out for her towel, only to find it missing. I leaned against the doorframe and waited her to notice me. When she did, she released a small gasp and narrowed her eyes slightly.

"Oh, you think you're funny do you?" she asked, with a gleam in her eye. I simply shrugged.

"If you want the towel, you'll have to come and get it," I taunted.

The look on her face could only be described as lustful, but she slowly stalked towards me. When she was within reach, I grabbed her wrist and pulled her tightly to me. She gasped when she felt my arousal pressed between us and pulled me down into a kiss. Our mouths immediately opened to each other and we both groaned at the contact.

I broke the contact to suckle and nibble on the skin of her neck and Bella brought her hands to my hair and sighed.

"I want to taste you darlin'," I told her, "Can I do that?"

"God, yes," Bella moaned. I began to trail open mouth kisses down her body, pausing to give attention to both of her breasts. I swiftly picked her up and sat her down on the edge of the counter in the bathroom.

Kissing all the way down her stomach and I momentarily eyed her dripping pussy. Leaning forward, I licked her entire slit and Bella's head dropped back slightly, hitting the mirror behind her.

"Oh God Jasper," she sighed. I began to lick her pussy with more fervor and her body was trembling with the need to come. I slid two fingers inside of her wet heat and Bella's hands immediately found their way to my hair, holding me to her tightly.

"You're close aren't you my sweet," I drawled out. Bella nodded her head quickly and her legs had my head in a near vice grip. I moved my hands to her thighs to hold her legs open and her movements became more frantic.

"Please Jasper…oh fuck," she panted, "I'm so close."

Smirking, I sucked her clit into my mouth and she fell apart in the most beautiful way.

"Shit," she sighed, as she caught her breath, "That was amazing."

I stood to full height and captured her lips with mine, keeping it relatively chaste, considering what had just happened.

"Do you need me to take care of you?"

"No, this was about you darlin," I insisted, "I'll be okay. I just couldn't restrain myself knowing you were in here naked and wet. We probably should get dressed though, I want to spend as much time as I possibly can with you."

"When do you have to go back to the ranch?" she asked, pouting a little. It was adorable.

"I need to head back sometime tomorrow afternoon," I replied, "I don't want to leave you now that I've found you again."

Bella smiled and brushed a few stray hairs out of my face, "I think we have a lot of talking to do," she said, "We need to figure out what _this_ is between us, and where we're going to go with it."

"You're right," I sighed, "Let's go."

I picked Bella up off of the counter and threw her over my shoulder out into the bedroom. She squealed when I dropped her on the mattress and giggled. Crawling off of the bed, she walked over to her dresser and put on some panties and a bra. Bella rolled her eyes at my blatant staring, but I simply shrugged. She was a beautiful woman standing partially nude in front of me. Of course I was going to stare. I finally broke my stare and finished getting dressed in the change of clothes I had brought over last night.

When I turned around again, I saw that Bella had already finished getting dressed herself and was wearing a pair of faded boot-cut jeans with a loose t-shirt. This time she was ogling me, despite my only wearing jeans and a t-shirt.

"See something you like my sweet?" I asked her and her eyes snapped to mine.

She smiled somewhat sadly and replied, "This is the outfit you wore when I met you."

"And what a wonderful day that was," I said, throwing her a lazy grin.

"If only I hadn't screwed everything up," she muttered.

"Hey hey hey," I said softly, walking over to her, "None of that. Come on darlin', there are some things you and I have to talk about."

Bella nodded and together we walked out to the living room and sat facing each other on her couch.

"I think we both agree that you and I have an amazing connection," I began and Bella smiled, "I've never met anyone like you in my life. And at the risk of sounding completely lame, I really like you Bella."

"I like you too, Jasper," she replied, "I think it was fate that brought us together, and now that you're here I really don't want to let you go again. But you live in Mustang Ridge, and I live here, and I don't even know what we are…" she began to ramble.

"Bella, it's only about a 20 minute drive, excluding rush hour traffic," I informed her, "And as far as what we are, I think we're just two people who have an insanely great time together who want to get to know each other better. And I do. You're beautiful, smart, funny, and nothing like anyone I've ever met before. I know we kind of starting things a little backwards, but I'd like to date you if you give me the chance."

"Date me?" she repeated.

"Yeah," I answered with a smile.

"Of course I want to date you, silly man," she laughed, throwing her arms around my neck and kissing my cheek. She leaned back and suddenly looked sort of nervous.

"What's wrong darlin'?"

"Can there be one condition to our 'dating'?" she asked.

"Whatever you want baby, what is it?"

"I don't think we should sleep together again," she mumbled, before frantically rushing out, "Not that I haven't loved being with you, it's just that I think it could be good for us if we get to know each other less physically for a while. I really like you, but I don't want us to be just based on sex. I understand if you don't…"

"Honey," I interrupted, "I completely understand. I'm not some sex crazed manic. Of course I love having sex with you, but I feel the same way. I want us to really get to know each other. I'm fine."

"Okay," Bella sighed, sounding relieved, "How about we make a limit or something. Say, no sex until after the third official date?"

"Sounds good to me, sugar."

"Most guys wouldn't like going that long without sex," she pointed out with a playful smirk.

"Well, I'm not most guys."

"That you aren't," she smiled, kissing me again, this time on the lips, "What do you want to do today?"

"That reminds me, I talked to Peter while you were showering and he and Charlotte want to go out to dinner with us."

"Did you tell them about us?"

"I just told him that we had met before, but it was kind of complicated. I told him that I'd explain it later. If you want, we can leave out a few details, it's up to you. I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable since you work with Peter and all."

"I think it'll be okay. Peter is more of a little brother to me than my assistant anyway and I've really become close with Charlotte since moving here. We're all adults, so the fact that we met in a one night stand type situation shouldn't be too hard to discuss," she laughed.

"I guess you're right," I chuckled.

"What time are we meeting them?"

"It's up to us," I replied, "They said just text them with the details."

"Is there anything in particular you have in mind?" Bella asked.

"I'm up for anything," I shrugged, "What are your favorite places?"

"There's a new Mexican place a few blocks away I've been wanting to try, it's pretty casual so what you have on is fine," she suggested.

"Sounds perfect to me, sugar. How does 7:00 sound?"

"Sounds perfect," she smiled.

I quickly texted the information to Peter and he replied back that it sounded good.

"When are you heading back to the ranch?" Bella asked me, her voice giving away her sadness at the thought.

"I was originally planning on leaving on Sunday, so tomorrow, I guess," I replied.

"You wouldn't mind stay with me tonight as well would you?" she asked shyly, "I know we agreed to not do anything, but I just want to spend as much time as possible before I go back to work and you go back to the ranch."

"Of course, I'll stay with you tonight darlin'. After dinner tonight, I'll go back to Peter's and grab the rest of my stuff. That way I'll have my truck here too."

"Thank you Jasper."

"You don't have to thank me, I want to spend time with you just as much," I told her with a smile.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm kind of feeling like a lazy movie day," Bella said with a grin.

"Sounds perfect to me," I said as Bella walked over to the shelf full of DVDs.

"Any particular movie genre?"

"Would it be too cliché if I said old Westerns?" I smiled and Bella glanced at me over her shoulder.

"You would," she giggled.

"Well, I don't have any John Wayne films, but I've got the True Grit remake?"

"You do?" I asked, kind of surprised.

"I have a wide variety of tastes," she shrugged as she inserted the disk in the DVD player. When she was back within arm's reach, I reached up and pulled her down to my lap. She giggled as I situated her so that we were both laying horizontal on the couch, her body between my legs. Bella pressed play and snuggled back into me as the opening credits began to roll.

It was extremely difficult for me to focus on the movie with her so close to me, but I knew I had to control myself. Bella wasn't just some girl who was good in bed. She was special and I intended to prove to her that I was serious about us.

I held Bella securely in my arms as we both watched the movie, occasionally kissing her head or gently rubbing her arms. With each kiss or touch Bella would release a small sigh and it brought a smile to my lips, knowing that she loved it as much as I did.

Suddenly I woke up to see the DVD menu displayed on the TV screen, Bella sound asleep on my chest. Apparently we had fallen asleep, comfortably wrapped up in each other, our arms and legs tangled together. I ran my fingers through her soft hair a few times and kissed her forehead as she began to stir.

"Wake up baby," I whispered.

"I guess we fell asleep," she spoke softly, lifting her head to rest her chin on my chest. I kissed the tip of her nose and she smiled up at me. I glanced at the time and saw that we only had 45 minutes until we were to meet my cousin.

"We should probably get ready so we can meet Peter and Charlotte," I said after a few moments. Bella glanced at the clock and jumped up.

"Shit. I'll go get ready, I won't be long," she said, scurrying back to her bedroom, leaving me in the living room.

I checked my phone and saw that Peter texted me a few minutes prior so I sent him a reply letting him know that we'd be on our way soon. In the meantime I grabbed my shoes and slipped them on, settling on the couch to wait for Bella.

I didn't have to wait very long because a few minutes later she emerged from her room looking breathtaking as usual. I already sensed that Bella was a low-maintenance kind of girl, but she never ceased to look completely stunning.

Bella had changed into a pair of skinny jeans and slipped into some sexy cowboy boots. She had changed her shirt as well, donning a simple blue and white plaid shirt.

"Damn," I breathed, and Bella giggled as she walked over to me, "You look incredible."

"I actually bought these boots not long after our first meeting. It didn't take me long to realize I had a weakness for the cowboy look," she winked before stretching up to kiss my lips.

"You ready to go?" she asked me when we broke apart.

"Of course," she nodded, grabbing her things. Together we headed down to the parking garage where she was parked. The drive to the restaurant wasn't far so we were able get there in no time at all. I spotted Charlotte's SUV in the parking lot so we headed inside.

"Bella! Jasper! Over here," I heard Charlotte call out a moment after we stepped through the front doors. We looked to the left and spotted the two of them in a booth in the corner. The restaurant had a very laid back atmosphere and upbeat Spanish music was playing at a comfortable volume in the background. Peter and Charlotte had already ordered some queso dip to go along with the complimentary chips and salsa, and the waiter dropped it off as Bella and I slid into the booth.

"Can I get you two something to drink?" he asked us with a thick Spanish accent.

"Yes, I'll have a beer, whatever you have on tap," I told him. I wasn't picky with my beer. Bella ordered a beer as well which intrigued me even further. I didn't really peg her for a beer girl.

"So," Charlotte said, breaking the silence with a smirk, "Did ya'll have a good night?"

Bella blushed and ducked her head, but nodded.

"Well, I'm happy for you both," she said with a smile, "Honestly, I had been toying around with the idea of setting you two up at some point, so this just makes it so much better."

Our waiter came back with our drinks and we gave him our orders, handing him our menus before walked away.

"So how exactly did you two meet?" Peter piped up.

"A few months ago, Bella's truck broke down on the road in front of the ranch when she was on her way here to Austin," I began and a flicker of recognition flashed in his eyes. Why did he have to be so damn observant? I knew he was already piecing together that it was Bella that had me messed up for the last couple of months.

"Jasper being the gentleman he is, helped me out by calling the garage and cooking me dinner," Bella continued, giving me a soft smile.

"I bet he helped you out in more ways than one," Charlotte said, taking a sip of her margarita. Apparently Peter was driving them home tonight.

"Char!" Bella gasped before falling into a heap of giggles. Charlotte simply shrugged. It was obvious that they had become good friends since Peter was her TA.

"Well, Jasper and I _did_ sleep together that night, something that I never do," she explained further, "But there was just something about him," she said, kissing my cheek.

"But you left," Peter pointed out.

"Peter…," I warned.

"I mean no disrespect Bella," he told her, "You may be my boss but I'd like to think that we've become good friends as well."

"I think of you as one of my good friends too," she replied.

"Well, Jasper is my best friend as well as my cousin. And you didn't see how he was these last few months, Bella. It was like he was here physically, but mentally and emotionally he was somewhere else entirely. He wouldn't even tell us what happened, but we knew it had to have been something pretty major to evoke that kind of depression from him."

I looked at Bella at she had unshed tears in her eyes.

"Peter, Bella and I have already talked things out, you don't have to upset her," I chastised, taking her hand in mine and kissing her temple.

"No, he's right, Jas," she said, "We can't just pretend that the last few months didn't happen. I made a mistake leaving you last night, but I also needed to hear what it was like because I did what I did. Peter, I value our friendship immensely, yours too Charlotte and I'm so glad that you were there for Jasper. I'll always regret that I acted on my fear instead of realizing that no matter how sudden it was, I was already falling for him. But I'm here now, and there's no way I'm ever letting him go again, okay? I'm seeing this through, whatever this is," she spoke, gesturing between us as our dinner was delivered to the table.

"I know you care about my cousin; even a blind man could see that," Peter replied, "I just needed to do my familial duty and make sure that you knew everything," he smiled.

"Well now that it's all straightened away, let's dig in," Charlotte spoke up with a giggle. I looked at Bella again to make sure she was okay she nodded to let me know she was. Leaning over, she placed a quick kiss on my cheek and began to eat her food. I was falling hard for this woman, and surprisingly, it didn't scare me one bit.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all characters, etc. Twilight related. Although if I could, I'd own Jacob Black, Sam Uley, and Jasper Hale. All other characters are mine.

**Chapter Three**

**BPOV- The Next Day (Sunday):**

"Tell me about your family," Jasper asked as we lay together on my couch. We had just finished the delicious breakfast that Jasper had surprised me with. He was actually an amazing cook, something else to add to his ever-growing list of qualities that I admired. He would be leaving in a few hours to drive back to the ranch and my heart ached with the thought alone. I knew it wasn't a long drive at all, but now that I had him back in my life, I didn't want to part with him.

"There's not much to tell," I replied with a soft smile, my cheek pressed up against his chest, Jasper's chin resting on top of my head.

"Well, I want to know everything about you, baby," he told me. How could I say no when he put it like that?

"Well, I'm 26 and I was born and raised in Seattle, Washington," I began, "My parents, Charlie and Renee, have been married for almost 30 years, they were high school sweethearts. My dad's the police chief in Seattle and my mom's a pediatric nurse."

"Your dad's a cop?" Jasper gulped, sounding nervous and I couldn't help but giggle at him.

"Just keep being nice to his baby girl and he won't shoot you," I teased, giving him a quick kiss on the lips.

"I can do that," he told me with a lazy smile, "Do you have any siblings?"

"I do," I nodded, "My little brother Michael is 20 and studying at the University of Washington part-time."

"That's a pretty big gap between you two," he noted.

"My mom apparently had trouble conceiving after having me, but six years later, Michael came along," I said, smiling, "Michael and I have always been very close, ever since he was born."

"You must miss him a lot."

"I do," I nodded, "I'm also not only an aunt, but a godmother as well."

"You are?" Jasper asked, surprised. Sitting up I turned to face him on the couch.

"When Michael was 18, he got his girlfriend pregnant. It was a stressful time for all of us, but we supported him. It's hard for me being so far away from my baby brother during that time though; I was in Jacksonville for school at this point, beginning my master's degree. His girlfriend Melanie seemed to be at least a little excited about it, and my brother was all in, very hands on throughout the entire pregnancy. Neither of them wanted to get married just yet, but my parents arranged a nursery at their house and Michael was actually really excited, especially when they learned that the baby was a boy. But a couple weeks before Melanie went into labor, she decided that she didn't want any part of it anymore."

"How could someone just decide to not be a mother?" Jasper asked bewildered.

"We've been asking ourselves the same thing, but as soon as little Oliver Nicholas Swan was born, she didn't even want to see him. She signed away her parental rights right there in the hospital and apparently moved in with some guy she had met while pregnant. My parents called me as soon as Melanie went into labor and all of the drama began. Luckily, the semester had just ended for the summer so I was able to leave right away and I made it there just as he was being born. I'd never seen my baby brother so scared before. Suddenly he was a single father at 18, my heart broke for him. I lost track of how many times he broke down in my arms angry and scared at the prospect of being a single father. I spent the summer at home with them, helping in any way I could."

"That was very sweet of you to do," Jasper noted, kissing my forehead, "I bet you're an amazing Aunt and sister."

"I do the best I can," I shrugged, "I miss them though. Michael took a gap year before starting school to adjust to parenthood and he's been taking classes part-time so that Oliver wouldn't have to be put in daycare. When Michael has class, my mom or dad watches him."

"It sounds like you have a very close-knit family; I can't wait to meet them."

"Really?"

"Of course. I really like you Bella, and I plan on dating you and being in a relationship with you. Meeting the parents would have to come at some point," he teased, "So why did you decide to go to school in Florida?"

"I pretty much just wanted a change from rainy Seattle," I laughed, "My best friend Alice and I applied to the University of North Florida together and got accepted. She majored in photography while I obviously majored in English. Alice and I lived together all through undergrad and grad school, she still lives there with her husband Emmett. They got married two years ago."

"What about you," I asked Jasper, wanting to know more about him as well.

"Let's see, I'm 27 and I'm a native Texan. The house on the ranch is the home I was raised in," he began and I smiled at the image of a smaller Jasper running around the ranch, "My parents, Dean and Sarah, died in a car accident when I was 16."

I gasped, "Oh Jasper, I'm so sorry."

"It's alright, darlin'. I've come to terms with it. It was a drunk driver that hit them; he died in the wreck as well. My parents left everything to me, but I didn't have access to it until I was 18 so my godparents, my Uncle Matthew and Aunt Ava, took me in. They took over the ranch for my parents, keeping things running."

"Peter's parents?" I asked and Jasper nodded.

"We were always really close growing up, but living together really brought us even closer. My dad and Uncle Matt were brothers and their parents came from old Southern money; money that I suddenly had access to on my 18th birthday. I put most of it away in savings accounts for the future, but I used some to pay for a car and school at UT-Austin."

"What did you major in?" I asked.

"Architecture," he replied, "When I graduated, I moved back home and moved back onto the ranch for Uncle Matt and Aunt Ava."

"Is it a working ranch?" I asked, not really knowing much about ranch life.

"It used to be, but no, I just live there. I own a small architecture company, it's basically just me and two other guys that work out of Austin, Jason and Andrew. They do the bulk of the designing and things, but I take on a few projects here and there. I just prefer the slow pace of Mustang Ridge, and being able to work from home there is great. It's a simple life, but I'm happiest out there in the solitude on my Dakota."

"Maybe I can get you to teach me how to finally ride a horse," I joked, "You are the one who said I needed to since I live in the South now."

"I'd be glad to teach you," he told me, squeezing our joined hands, bringing them up to his lips.

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**Still BPOV- Two Weeks Later:**

"Peter, can you make copies of these tests for class on Monday?" I asked hurriedly as I paced around my office, making sure I had everything I needed.

"I sure can," he replied, poking his head in the doorway, "You alright there Bells?"

"Yeah, I'm just a little flustered," I sighed, sinking down into my desk chair, "Jasper is coming up for our first official date tonight."

"So what's the problem?" he asked, walking in and sitting on the chair in front of me. Truthfully, I was probably just making all of this up in my head, but the two weeks have given me a lot of time to overthink things.

"What if in the last two weeks he's realized that I'm not as intriguing as he once thought or something like that?" I said dejectedly.

"Seriously?" Peter said, looking at me like I grew a second head, "I've never seen my cousin as into someone as he is with you. Two weeks without seeing him isn't going to change that."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure, Bella. You're just nervous, but you don't need to be you know that right? Jasper is crazy about you."

I sighed heavily and threw my head down on my desk, "Why am I freaking out so much?"

"I don't know," he chuckled, "but it's after five. Go home, get ready, and have an amazing night."

"Thanks Peter, what would I do without you?" I smiled and he shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm not really sure," he teased. He stood and waited for me as I gathered my things and headed out the door.

"Have fun, Bells," he said.

"Thanks Peter, see you Monday," I told him with a smile before walked out of the English department hall and over to the faculty parking deck where my truck was parked. I found it immensely ironic that my truck had not had any issues ever since it broke down in Mustang Ridge. In fact, it's been running better than ever.

A few minutes later I arrived at my apartment building and made my way upstairs to get ready. I checked the time and noted that Jasper would be arriving in about an hour so I quickly hopped in the shower. I washed my hair and shaved everything that needed to be shaved before turning off the water and stepping out. Slipping on my bathrobe and wrapping my wet hair in a towel, I ventured into my closet to find something to wear. It was times like this when I needed Alice here with me. She was the fashionista out of the two of us, always picking out my outfits for events in college. It wasn't that I hated shopping; I just didn't spend as much time or thought on it. Finally, I decided on a deep blue sweater I had gotten a few weeks prior, pairing it with grey skinny jeans and knee-high black boots.

Laying my outfit out on my bed, I walked over to my dresser and picked out a lacey black bra and matching underwear. Even though Jasper and I wouldn't be sleeping together tonight, I still wanted to feel sexy. Although, Jasper had a way of making me feel that way regardless. Taking my hair down from the towel, I padded back into the bathroom in my underwear to blow dry my hair.

Once it was dry and falling in smooth ways down my back, I applied some makeup, going for the bare minimum. I never wore much anyway so I just put on some powder foundation and some light eye shadow.

I knew Jasper would be arriving soon so I got dressed in my outfit, looking myself over in my full length mirror.

I was pulling on my boots when I heard the buzzing sound signaling me that someone was downstairs. Walking over to the intercom, I immediately heard Jasper's voice and it sent tingles up my spine. I buzzed him in and my stomach fluttered with the knowledge that he'd be here in a few minutes. I was already walking out towards the door when I heard him knock. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door and nearly died on the spot.

Jasper had on a pair of black dress pants that fit him absolutely perfectly. He had paired it with a light grey button-up shirt. It was hard to believe that a man this handsome could possibly be all mine.

"Hey," he finally spoke with a smile.

"Hi," I replied, breathless. Before I could talk myself out of it I launched myself at him, capturing his lips with mine. Jasper grunted as he caught me in his arms out of surprise but I soon felt his muscled arms tighten around my waist as he walked us inside my apartment and kicked the door shut.

Backing me up until my back was pressed firmly against the wall; Jasper effortlessly lifted me up and wrapped my legs around his waist. I felt his arousal stir between our bodies and I knew that we had to reign ourselves in before things got too out of hand. The man was just too sexy for his own good.

Gradually, our kisses began to slow and I rested my forehead against his, no other sounds in the apartment except for our labored breathing.

"I've missed you," I finally said and Jasper released a low chuckle.

"I can see that," he laughed before turning serious again, "But I've missed you too. More than you can imagine."

He kissed my lips chastely once more before setting me back down on the ground.

"I'm sorry I couldn't arrange anything sooner, work has been crazy with the new semester starting," I said, even though he already knew this. Despite my hectic work schedule and his constant work around the ranch, we still managed to talk on the phone just about every day after finally exchanging cell phone numbers when I last saw him.

"I know darlin', it's okay," he told me, "You look beautiful by the way. My memories simply didn't do you any justice."

"You look good too," I replied with a smile.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked.

"Yes, just let me grab my bag," I said, walking over to the counter to grab my small clutch bag that held my phone, wallet, and my keys. Walking back to Jasper, I looped my arm through his, "All set."

Together we made our way down to his truck, arms intertwined the whole way.

"Are you going to tell me where we're headed?" I asked once we were in the truck and pulling away from my building. Jasper smiled at me playfully and shook his head no.

"It's a surprise."

"What if I don't like surprises?"

"I think you'll like this one," he assured me.

When we drove across the river and into a familiar part of town, I instantly perked up, hoping my suspicions were correct.

"I hope you like burgers," Jasper finally said and I squealed.

"Whataburger?" I asked excitedly and he nodded.

"I know it's not typical first date stuff, but I just thought that we weren't your typical couple anyway...," he began to ramble as he pulled into the parking lot, but I stopped him mid-sentence.

"It's perfect Jasper," I assured him, "You don't need to impress me, and besides, I freaking love Whataburger. One of the other professors in the English department turned me on to it and I've been hooked ever since."

"Well in that case, dinner awaits," he smirked, hopping out and quickly walking over to the passenger side to open my door for me. Yes, I could really get used to this Southern hospitality thing.

Together we walked up to the window and placed our orders. I wanted to avoid the awkward "who's going to pay" scenario so I didn't argue when Jasper pulled out his wallet. I had a feeling he wouldn't have taken no for an answer anyway. Luckily we didn't have to wait long for our food to be ready.

"What do you say we take a walk through the park over there and find a park bench to sit on," I suggested.

"That's a great idea," Jasper said with a smile. He held both of our bags in his left hand, and reached for my hand with the other. We carefully crossed the road and entered the park across the street. It was a chilly night and not a lot of people were out, but I didn't mind. Something about the solitude enhanced the romance of the evening.

We found an empty park bench overlooking the water and sat down, immediately digging into our burgers. Jasper opted for a bacon double cheeseburger while I chose a green chile burger. He seemed kind of surprised, but I cheekily told him that I liked things spicy.

"So, how are things in Mustang Ridge?" I asked him, taking a sip of my soda as I finished my meal.

"Same old same old," he replied, "I was emailed a potential project this morning. An elementary school is Austin is adding on a new wing and asked me to design it."

"That's great baby," I smiled, "I can tell you really like what you do."

"I do," he smiled, "When I was little I was constantly drawing little doodles and things. I remember my mom always kept the fridge covered with my 'artwork'" he said, making air quotes with his hands.

"My dad even bought me a little child sized drawing table," Jasper continued, lost in his memories.

"I would have loved to have known them," I spoke up, "They seem like amazing people."

Jasper looked at me with a sweet smile on his face, "They were. I bet they would have liked you."

He brought his hands up to cradle my face and kissed me chastely on the lips. We pulled away slightly and our eyes locked.

"Would you like to go for a walk?" I suggested, finally breaking the silence. Jasper nodded silently and we gathered up our trash and things before throwing our garbage away. Together we walked hand in hand down the waterfront, occasionally passing couples doing the same.

Up ahead we noticed a man singing softly while playing an acoustic guitar. He had a decent crowd of people around him, so Jasper and I approached him to have a listen. He sang with such a soulful quality and it was absolutely beautiful to hear. When the song was over we all applauded him and a few people even deposited a couple dollars in his guitar case.

"Do you want to stick around to hear more?" Jasper asked.

"No, that's okay. Do you want to come back to my place for some coffee? It's getting chilly out," I suggested.

"That sounds perfect, darlin'. Let's go," he said, kissing my cheek and looping his arm through mine. We walked the short distance back to the car and made our way back to my place.

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**A/N: Leave some love! See you next week!**


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all characters, etc. Twilight related. Although if I could, I'd own all of the Twilight guys. All other characters are mine.

**A/N: Whoops, lost track of time and now it's technically it's already Sunday here, but here's chapter four! See you next week!**

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**Chapter Four**

**BPOV- The Next Morning**

"Hello?" I answered my cell phone groggily.

"Morning sunshine!" my best friend Alice chirped in my ear, scaring the crap out of me.

"Damn Alice, why are you calling so early?" I asked. I was always sort of bitch first thing in the morning, especially when I was so rudely woken at- 8 o'clock in the morning- I noticed glancing at my alarm clock.

"It's not that early," she tried to reason.

"Alice, Texas is one hour behind Florida. It's only eight here," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Well you're awake now so cheer up," she giggled, "How are you? We haven't talked in a while."

"I know, I've been pretty busy with the new semester starting."

"So who's the guy?"

I pulled the phone away my ear and looked at it bewildered before putting it back to my ear.

"What guy? What makes you think there's a guy?"

"First off, I know there's a guy because of how you just answered me," she laughed, "But I don't know, I've just had this feeling lately."

"And you swear you're not psychic?" I questioned, sitting up to lean against my headboard.

"So there_ is_ someone…"

"Fine. Yes. There is someone I've been seeing," I gave in finally.

"Ahh! I knew it! Tell me everything!" she squealed.

"Well…do you remember me telling you about that guy I slept with a few months back?"

"Yes…," Alice said slowly, "The one who apparently was a God in bed," she snickered, "I still don't know how you just got up and walked away. Wait. Is he who you've been seeing? How did this happen?"

"His name is Jasper Whitlock," I shared with a smile, "He's an architect, and happens to be the cousin of my TA, Peter, the one I've told you about."

"Oh you two must really be meant to be," Alice sighed, "I mean you don't see each other for months and the guy happens to be related to your assistant? You can't write this kind of stuff. How long has this been going on?"

"Not that long," I replied, "It's nothing too serious right now. Peter and Charlotte invited me to their place for a New Year's Eve party and Jasper happened to be there too. He took me off the side so we could talk. I had a lot of explaining to do after walking out on him."

"How did he take it?"

"He was hurt, as he should have been. I was stupid to leave his place the way that I did, but I was just so scared. Not scared of him, just scared that I was feeling things for someone I didn't even know. He kind of understood, but then one thing led to another and we kind of slept together again."

"Ooh, was it as good as you remembered?" she giggled.

"Better…if that's even possible," I groaned.

"Girl, you've got it bad."

"I do, but we're taking things slow."

"How slow?"

"We agreed to not sleep together again until we've been on at least three dates," I told her.

"Why the hell would you do that?"

"I just want us to get to know each other in a less physical manner. I really like him Alice, and I don't want any future relationship we may have to be based on just sex."

"Good point," Alice replied, "Well, I'm happy for you Bella, I really am."

"Thanks Ali," I told her, "So enough about me, how are you? How's Emmett?"

"Things are great, but we miss you so much. Things are picking up for, I just booked a bunch of photo shoots for a couple local designers. I don't know I pulled that one off. Oh and we're talking about maybe trying to have a baby!"

"You're an amazing photographer Alice. They probably took one look at your photos and knew that they had to hire you. Wait, did you just say you're going to try to have a baby?" I gasped.

"Mhmm," Alice replied, "Last week, Emmett and I were walking in the park and passed a young couple with their child and I immediately began to picture Emmett holding a baby, and let me tell you, the image alone made me want to jump him right there. But, he must have been thinking something along the same lines because he turned to me and asked me what I thought about possibly starting a family together. We've been married for two years now and I love him more than anything. I think we're ready."

"Oh Ali, that's so great," I gushed, "I'm going to be an Aunty! You and Emmett are going to be amazing parents."

"Thanks, B. Emmett says hello by the way, he's putting together a bookshelf or something his mom bought for us. It's beautiful, but he's having some trouble. And you know men and their complete inability to read directions."

At the mention of Esme, Emmett's mother, I felt the need to ask, "Have you seen Edward lately?"

"We had him over for dinner last week, since he was home for a quick visit from his residency," Alice said, "He seems okay, albeit a little sad, but okay nonetheless."

"I still feel terrible for how things ended."

"Don't worry about it Bella, you can't control your feelings. We all saw that you and Edward were growing apart with his med school taking up so much time. You were great while it lasted, but I honestly don't think you two were meant for each other. Edward's just having a tough time moving on, he'll come around, don't worry."

Edward Cullen was Alice's brother-in-law. We met him at the club the same night we met Emmett all those years ago when we were seniors in college. They were Jacksonville natives; Edward was pre-med while Emmett was going into physical therapy. Alice and Emmett hit it off immediately and I found myself very attracted to Edward. He asked me out to dinner the next night and I agreed. We immediately fell into a wonderful, sweet relationship that lasted about two years, until my nephew was born. Things were going great and Edward was definitely one of my first real loves, but when I went home for the summer, we broke things off. We just couldn't handle the long distance. When I came back we gradually eased back into a relationship but he was busy all the time with medical school, which I completely understood. But things weren't the same and although I don't think Edward wanted to admit it, we both knew it. Two years later, just after my graduation from grad school I finally ended things and he pleaded with me to stay, but our relationship was over. I think I'd always care for Edward, but we just grew too far apart to ever stay together. Shortly after, I was offered the position here in Austin so I took it, needing a change.

"I just hate that he's suffering."

"I know you do, Bells. You have such a kind heart, but he will be okay. People break up all the time and he'll find someone again soon. You've moved on with Jasper and Edward will move on too."

"I hope so. He's a great guy and any woman would be lucky to be with him," I said.

"I agree. Listen, I have to go, I think Emmett is threatening to use this bookshelf as firewood. Men," she sighed, "I love you and I'll talk to you soon. I want to hear more on this Jasper Whitlock you're so enamored with."

"Alright, goodbye Alice, love you," I said before hanging up the phone. I didn't realize until she had called just how much I had missed her. Maybe she and Emmett could make a visit out here soon.

Placing my phone back on my nightstand, I stretched my limbs out with a groan. Sighing, I slid out of bed and padded over to my bathroom to take a shower. Letting the water heat up, I shrugged out of my tank top and shorts before stepping in and letting the warmth wash over me.

As I washed my hair and my body I let my thoughts drift to my date with Jasper last night. It was simple and sweet, but absolutely perfect. When we came back here for coffee, I was seriously wondering if I had the strength to control myself from not jumping him.

**Flashback**

"_You can just relax on the couch," I told Jasper once we had gotten back, "I'll get the coffee started."_

"_Alright baby," he said, kissing me quickly. I yelped as he gently swatted at my behind as I walked into the kitchen._

_Breathless, I got the coffee started before rejoining Jasper who was lounging on the couch looking ridiculous handsome with his arms resting on the back. He had his head back and eyes closed so I took the opportunity to worm my way into his side. He brought his arms down to circle my body and he tilted his head down to look at me._

"_Hey," he whispered with a smile ghosting along his face._

"_Hey," I whispered back as I stretched upwards to meet his lips for a kiss._

"_I love kissing you," he told me, "I just can't get enough of you."_

"_I love it too," I replied, "I had a great time tonight. Thank you."_

"_You're welcome darlin'."_

**End Flashback**

I managed to have him in my apartment without jumping, though we did have a pretty steamy make out session after our coffee mugs were drained. Smiling at the memory of mouth on mine, I turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. I dried off, wrapped my hair in a towel, and slipped into my fluffy bathrobe before returning to my bedroom. I slipped on some underwear and into jeans and a loose t-shirt. As I was shaking my hair out of the towel, my phone began to ring and I recognized the ringtone as Michael's.

"Hey baby bro," I answered.

"Hey Bells, how are you?" my brother replied. I missed him so much sometimes.

"I'm good, just got out of the shower actually."

"Really? It's a little early for you to be up isn't it?" he joked.

"Alice was my wakeup call this morning," I told him.

"Ah," Michael said, knowing perfectly well how perky she can be at all hours of the day and night, "Oliver woke up early this morning so I know how you feel."

"How is the little man?" I asked as a pang of longing hit me. I missed that little boy; I hated that I lived so far away from him as he was growing up.

"He's good; he's watching some cartoons and eating some cereal right now. I'm going to start breakfast for him and Mom and Dad soon but I wanted to talk to my sister first."

"What's wrong?" I asked, immediately going into protective sister mode.

"Nothing, I promise," Michael laughed, "I just hadn't talked to you in a while and I missed your voice. It is okay for a brother to miss his sister every once in a while you know."

"I miss you too Michael," I sighed, "Maybe you all can come down for a visit soon."

"I think Mom and Dad were talking about maybe coming down on my spring break in March, but we'll see. Fingers crossed."

"Yeah, that would be great," I replied.

"So how's life, sis? Any new developments?"

"Wellll," I drew out.

"Alright, spill."

"Well, it's very new but I'm kind of seeing someone," I shared.

"Oh really? Is he nice?"

"His name is Jasper and he is very sweet. He's definitely a Southern gentleman," I gushed, "Just please don't mention anything to Mom and Dad yet. We've only technically been on one official date so I kind of want to see where this leads first."

"Can do. Do you think this has potential? I want to meet this guy; make sure he's suitable for sister and all that."

I laughed at his protectiveness before replying, "I don't know, I think it could. I've never felt this way about anyone before. Even after all those years with Edward it always just felt sort of safe and reserved. When I'm with Jasper, it's like everything in me just comes alive."

"You sound smitten," he observed.

"I think I am, I just don't want to jinx anything. We're not even official or anything like that yet."

"Well good luck with that Bells, but be careful. Tell me if he does anything wrong and I'll be on the next flight out to kick his ass."

"Alright. Well, I don't think he will, but I'll definitely let you know," I laughed.

"I need to go start breakfast, but don't be a stranger alright?"

"Alright little bro, I love you. I need to get some grading done anyway. Give Oliver and the parentals all kisses for me."

"Will do, love you Bells. Bye."

"Bye Michael."

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**JPOV**

"Hey man, want to meet us at Southern Comfort? Me and Daniel were in town for the day and haven't hung out together in a while," Ben asked me when I answered the phone. I had just returned from riding Dakota around the ranch when my cell phone rang. I knew Ben and Daniel, my partners in the architectural firm, from high school and they were obviously back visiting family for the day.

"Sure, what time do you want to meet?"

"Well it's almost five now, so how about 5:30?"

"Can do," I replied. Southern Comfort was the only bar slash restaurant in Mustang Ridge, and guys and me all worked there in high school and during the summers. Occasionally I would go for a drink by myself, but usually it was something I did with Ben and Daniel when they were in town.

I made my way upstairs to take a quick shower but before slipping into a change of clothes. In a few minutes I was ready to go, so I grabbed my keys and walked out to my truck. The drive from the ranch was a short one, only about five or ten minutes or so, depending on if there were any tractors riding down the main road. Ah, the troubles of country life.

I pulled into the small gravel parking lot of the dive bar, spotting Daniel's BMW a few spots over. I walked inside and greeted Mable, the sweetest old lady you'd ever meet in your life, who ran Southern Comfort ever since her husband passed away three years ago. They opened the place together after their first year of marriage almost 45 years ago and she just couldn't bear to part with it.

"Hey there sugar," Mable smiled.

"Hi Mable, how are you?" I asked, leaning over the bar to kiss her cheek. In addition to my aunt, Mable had been like another mother to me after my parents died.

"I'm doing okay, just gettin' older every day," she sighed, "You'll know what I mean someday."

I laughed and squeezed her hand, "Well, I see the guys are here so I need to go join them."

"Alright, baby. Say goodbye before you leave, okay? I don't see you down here enough."

"Will do," I told her before I walked over to the table where Ben and Daniel were sitting. They all smiled when they saw me approaching.

"J-man! Long time no see!" Daniel called out. I rolled my eyes at his nickname that he had for me for years but smiled anyway as I sat down.

"How have ya'll been?" I asked. I saw that they both had drinks in front of them so I signaled for the waitress to come over.

"Can't complain," Daniel replied, "Work has been crazy lately, as I'm sure you know."

"Can I get you something sweetheart?" the waitress asked as she approached our table. She looked to be in her mid-twenties and had her mid-length blonde hair styled in loose waves around her face. I could tell by the way she was eying me that she found me attractive, but I ignored it. It wasn't that I didn't find her attractive, but no one could hold a candle to my Bella. She had be completely wrapped around her finger and she wasn't even technically my girlfriend yet. But that was something that needed to change very soon.

"Um yes, I'll have a Jack and Coke, please," I told her before turning back to the guys. After a moment's hesitation she seemed to have gotten the hint and walked away.

I looked up to find all three guys staring at me like I had grown a third head.

"What?" I asked.

"What's the matter with you? You had a gorgeous girl in front of you, obviously into you, and you didn't even blink? What happened to that Whitlock charm that always has girls melting into puddles around you? What gives?" Ben questioned.

"She's just not my type," I shrugged.

"Come on man, we know you better than that," Ben told me, "What's going on with you?"

"Yeah, we haven't heard much from you in weeks, almost months. Something's different about you," Daniel added.

"Okay, okay," I chuckled, throwing my hands up in surrender, "I may have met someone."

"When did this happen?" they asked.

"Technically a few months ago," I replied, taking my drink from the waitress as she came back. I flashed her a quick smile, but not enough to get her hopes up.

"Explain," Ben said.

I sighed and launched into the story of how Bella and I met, leaving out the more intimate details, just giving them enough information to be satisfied.

"I think I'm in shock," Daniel said, sitting back in his chair, "You never have one night stands, not even in college."

"I know man, but there's just something about Bella. I was instantly attracted to her before she even opened her mouth to speak."

"So what happened, are you still seeing her?"

"Well, the next morning I guess she kind of got freaked out about what had happened so she left."

"Wait, so she just left? What the hell?" Daniel asked.

"I was confused too. I was even more confused at the realization that it really hurt that she was gone. I barely knew her but I felt this emptiness. But on New Year's Eve I saw her again at Peter and Charlotte's party."

"What was she doing there?"

"Well, it turns out that Peter is her teacher's assistant at UT, so essentially she is my cousin's boss," I chuckled.

"Damn, it's a small world," Ben laughed, "So what happened?"

"We managed to get away from the crowds and talk about what happened. She's not the one night stand kind of girl either and got freaked out by her feelings for me that she was having so soon. We kind of slept together again that night."

"Atta boy, Jasper!" Daniel cheered, raising his glass.

"We've decided to give a relationship a shot," I continued, "She lives in Austin so it's not like it's a long drive or anything. We actually had our first official date last night."

"Our boy is just growing up," Daniel mocked, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye.

"But isn't it kind of backwards for you two?" Ben asked, "I mean considering you've already slept together twice."

"Actually," I drawled out, "We agreed to not have sex again until we've gone out a few more times."

I nearly choked on my drink when I saw all three of their jaws drop at the same time. Going without sex for any considerable amount of time was a foreign concept to this lot. They constantly had a girlfriend or something.

"Seriously?" Daniel finally asked.

I nodded before answering, "I know it sounds kind of crazy, but Bella's different. If it were anyone else, I'm not sure I would be so willing to do it, but I really care for her."

"That's great man. Seriously," Ben told me, clapping me on the back with a smile.

"Jasper?" I heard a timid voice say behind me.

I looked up and saw that Ben and Daniel's faces were kind of shocked and looking past me, so I turned around.

"Olivia?" I gasped. I hadn't seen or heard from Olivia Weston in almost five years, and I was extremely confused as to why she was back in town. Yet here she was, standing in front of me in Southern Comfort, looking like she just stepped off of the runway. Last I heard that's what she was doing in New York anyway. She was wearing red skinny jeans and black and white top. She had black heels on her feet and her brownish-blonde hair was swept back away from her face. Here in the heart of Texas, she couldn't have looked more out of place.

"What are you doing here?" I finally asked, as I stood and took a couple steps towards her.

"I came back to visit Momma and Daddy," she replied, "Daddy had a heart attack a couple weeks ago, nothing major, but I wanted to visit them all the same."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I told her honestly. Her parents had always liked me and if I saw them in the grocery store they would at least give me a polite smile in passing.

"So how have you been?" she asked, almost hesitantly.

"I've been good," I told her, "It was nice seeing you Olivia, but I've got to get back to the guys."

"Of course," she said, smiling slightly, "Bye Jasper."

"Bye," I replied, turning back to sit at the table feeling very confused.

"What the hell is Olivia doing back here?" Daniel asked, after Olivia had left.

"She said she was visiting her parents," I told them, taking a drink. Five years. Five years is a long time to go without seeing someone that once meant the world to a person. Regardless of if I was completely over her, which I was, it was just unnerving to see her here in Mustang Ridge again.

"You alright man?" Ben asked me.

"I'm good," I sighed, sitting back in my chair, "It was just weird seeing her after all of these years."

"You don't still have feelings for her?" he asked.

"No of course not," I said, "Whatever I had with her is long over. I've moved on, and I'm focused solely on what I have with Bella. It just caught me off guard, seeing her here, you know?"

"Yeah, we get it," Daniel spoke up, before changing the subject, "Oh, before I forget, would you mind coming in to the office on Wednesday?"

"Sure, what's going on?"

"Nothing major, we just have an inquiry meeting for a potential new project that we'd like your input on. Our contact person is particularly interested with your designs, so I think it'd make a good impression if you were there."

"Alright, sure, I'll be there," I told them, as our waitress came back with some appetizers that the guys must have ordered.

"Let's dig in," Daniel smiled before diving into the food and conversation.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all characters, etc. Twilight related. Although if I could, I'd own Jacob Black, Sam Uley, and Jasper Hale. All other characters are mine.

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A/N: I think I need to get reminders for myself, totally forgot to post this yesterday. Oh well, enjoy!

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**Chapter Five**

**JPOV**

"Thanks again for driving up here," Daniel told me, after our 10 o'clock meeting left the conference room, "I think we'll hear more from him, he seems to like your ideas."

"It was no problem at all," I replied, "Just because I prefer to work from the ranch doesn't mean I mind dropping by the office."

"You going to stick around or are you just going to drive back?" Ben asked, shuffling some papers and slipping them into a folder.

"I was thinking about surprising Bella at the office since the university isn't too far from here."

"How cute, J-man the romantic," Daniel teased before I punched him in the shoulder.

"Alright, well we'll be in contact with you about this account," Ben told me, standing to embrace me in the typical "guy hug."

"I'll see ya'll later," I said, walking out of the conference room.

"Bye Donna," I told the receptionist, who waved to me as she was on the phone. I rode the elevator down to the parking garage to get in my truck. Pulling out onto the bustling city street, I headed in the direction of the university; stomach getting a funny sort of feeling as I grew closer and close to the English department's building. I had never been affected by a woman this way, but I'll be damned if I didn't love it.

Finding the lot reserved for visitor parking, I leisurely walked across the courtyard, watching the young college students make their way to and from classes. It seemed like forever since I had been one of them, getting my degree on this same campus. When I walked into the English building, I stopped by the receptionist desk.

"May I help you?" the sweet elderly lady asked me.

"Yes, could you point me in the direction of Bella Swan's office?" I asked.

"Of course dear, just head down the hall and take the stairs one flight up. She's office number 212."

"Thank you," I smiled, turning and walking in the direction she indicated. I paused outside of Bella's office door and peeked in. Bella had her nose buried in a book and was sitting in her desk chair, facing the window behind her. Leaning against the door frame, I knocked gently on the open door.

At the sound, Bella jumped and turned towards the door. After a split second of confusion, her face lit up and she flashed me a breathtakingly beautiful smile.

"Jasper!" she exclaimed, throwing her book on her desk and standing up. She was dressed professionally in a pair of black pinstripe pants with a deep purple button up shirt. She wore a pair of small heels on her feet, making her legs looked like they went on forever. I always thought Bella was gorgeous, but this professional borderline naughty librarian look nearly had me drooling.

I pushed myself off of the frame and met her halfway, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her body close to me. Bella wrapped her arms around my neck and held me tightly. I breathed in the sweet scent of her hair and buried my nose in it. I kissed her neck before pulling back slightly to look at her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked me with a smile still on her face.

"I had a business meeting at the office and I thought I'd swing by and surprise you," I said, kissing her forehead, her nose, and then finally her mouth. We kept it chaste considering we were in her workplace, but it still sent shockwaves through me.

"Well I'm glad you did," she told me, stepping out of my arms and pulling me to sit down on the small couch situated in the corner of her office.

"You have a couch?"

"It's more comfortable to read in," she explained, "I wanted it to feel sort of home-y here."

"So how has your day been so far?" I asked, throwing an arm around her shoulders and intertwining our fingers with my other hand.

"Not bad, just the usual griping and complaining when I assigned a paper today. It's only a 2-3 page paper, the babies," she said, causing me to laugh.

"How did your meeting go?" she asked me.

"Good. Apparently there's a potential client that seemed particularly interested in my designs so Ben and Daniel asked me to sit in on the meeting. I think it went well, he seemed like he wanted us to do the job for him."

"That's great," Bella told me, leaning her head on my shoulder, "Are you in any particular rush to get back to the ranch?"

"Not really. What did you have in mind?"

"I was thinking, since you're here, that maybe you could take me to lunch?" she asked, twisting her head to look up at me.

"I'd love to," I replied, pecking her lips, "Are you ready now?"

"Sure, just let me grab my stuff," she told me, standing and walking back behind her desk. Slipping on her coat, she then picked up her small tote bag and swung it over her shoulder.

"Ready," she said, walking back to me, "Are you hungry for anything in particular?"

"Not really, I'll let you pick the place."

"There's a great burrito place, around the block. A lot of the students go there because it's pretty cheap for their budgets."

"Sounds good," I said, looping her arm through mine as we walked out of the building. As we stepped into the crisp winter air, a strong breeze picked up as we walked, causing Bella loose hair to go flying. I looked down at her to see her face carefree and smiling as she giggled while trying to tame her hair in the wind. I was suddenly struck with the overwhelming need to make her mine in that moment. A feeling surfaced in me that I wasn't entirely familiar with and overtook my thought process as I blurted out:

"Be my girlfriend."

Bella stopped her movements and looked at me with wide eyes, "What?"

"I know we haven't had the most conventional relationship so far, and we've only been on one date. But I've never felt for anyone what I feel for you, not ever. So please, will you be my girlfriend?"

Bella paused before a smiling and stepping towards me, looping her arms through mine as my hands were shoved nervously into my pockets. Pulling my hands out and placing them around her small waist, Bella stretched up and pressed her mouth against mine. Our mouths moved together firmly and I pulled her tighter to me. When we finally broke apart, Bella trailed light kisses from my jawline back to my ear.

"Yes," she whispered, "I would love to be your girlfriend."

I groaned at her words and crushed my mouth to hers once more. I could feel the gazes of the students passing by, but I couldn't bring myself to care. We pulled apart, our faces flushed, and gazed at each other for a few moments.

"We should probably get going," Bella finally said, "I think we're causing a scene," she giggled.

"You're right," I smiled, "Let's go."

The burrito place Bella picked wasn't very far at all so we walked the whole way, arm in arm. We sat at a small table in the corner and ate our food, barely tearing our eyes from each other. When our waitress set the check down I shot Bella a look, letting her know that I was paying. Bella stuck her tongue out at me, and a shot of desire swept over me. I was about to kiss her when I heard a throat clear behind us.

I turned around sharply but stopped when I saw that Olivia was behind us. I nearly groaned at the awkwardness I was sure was about to ensue. I was planning on telling Bella about Olivia anyway, but I didn't want to have to have that conversation like this.

"Hi, Jasper," she said and Bella looked up at me with a curious look on her face.

"Hi Olivia," I replied, before turning towards Bella, "Olivia this is my girlfriend, Bella. Bella, this is Olivia, I went to school back in Mustang Ridge."

At the word girlfriend, Olivia's eyes widened, but she recovered quickly.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you," Bella said, holding out her hand. Olivia took it and they shook hands.

"Well, we need to get going so Bella can get back to work," I said after a few awkward pauses.

"It was good seeing you again Jasper," she said before turning away from us.

"Again?" Bella asked as we stepped out onto the street. Her tone wasn't accusing, but I could only imagine what she was thinking.

"I ran into Olivia the other day at the bar with the guys."

"Is she your ex?" she asked quietly, slipping her hand into mine.

"We dated, yes. But it's ancient history. We broke up five years ago. We decided to end things after college when she made up her mind to move to New York."

"And you're completely over her?" she asked. I stopped walking and stepped in front of Bella. Cradling her face in my hands, I replied,

"Yes, baby. I've been over her for a long time now. I'm with you now and I am absolutely crazy about you. There's nothing to worry about darlin'."

"I know," she sighed, twisting her head to kiss my palm, "I do know, it's just…I didn't expect to have to encounter any exes just yet. I mean I know it's highly illogical to ever think that you had never been with anyone else, but I still don't like thinking about it. I trust you, and I can tell that you don't feel anything for her."

"I'm glad to hear you say that," I said, pulling her to me for a kiss.

"Edward Cullen is probably my Olivia," Bella said, taking my hand and continuing our walk.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I can tell that things were serious at one point with the two of you. Edward is my ex back in Florida. We were together for a total of about four years. We broke up for a little while about halfway in. I had decided to move back to Seattle for the summer to be with my brother and Oliver, and the long distance became too much. We rekindled not long after I came back though."

"What made you finally end things with him?" I asked, realizing just what Bella meant when she said that she didn't like thinking about me with anyone else.

"I just finally realized that he and I were never meant to be. I kind of woke up and realized that there wasn't sparks or any sort of passion in our relationship. It was safe and familiar but when I tried to picture a future with him, I just couldn't do it. I hated to hurt Edward like that, but I couldn't just lead him on."

"So then you moved here?" I asked.

"Well not directly after, but a few months later, yes," she smiled, stretching up to kiss my cheek, "And it brought me to you."

"That it did," I smiled as well, "So was Edward your only serious relationship?"

"Basically. I was pretty much focused on school a lot so I didn't date much at all. I had one high school boyfriend that lasted a few months but that's all. What about you?"

"Kind of the same. Olivia and I dated all four years of college but before that, there was the girl I took to prom which lasted maybe six months. I hear she's a lesbian now."

Bella erupted with laughter and soon we both fell into a laughing fit.

"So does this count as our second date?" Bella asked me as we walked back inside of the English department building.

I chuckled, "Can't wait to get to that third date can you babe?"

Bella blushed and pressed her face into the crook of my neck, "Maybe," I heard her whisper.

"I feel the same way," I smiled, "We can count today if you'd like," I told her.

"Really?"

"Yes," I laughed.

Bella squealed and threw her arms around my neck. I stopped walking and hugged her tight to me. I released her after a moment, but not before kissing her chastely on the lips. I just loved kissing her.

Finally we reached her office, and I realized that I felt kind of sad that I had to leave her. If I had it my way, I'd never spend a second away from this magnificent woman. Peter was now sitting at his desk just outside the door. He looked up and looked surprised when he saw me with Bella.

"Hey cousin, didn't expect to see you here."

"I had a meeting at the office and came over to surprise Bella," I explained.

"He took me to lunch," Bella said, wrapping her arms around my waist.

"Well I hate to break up the love fest, but Bella and I have to get to class soon," Peter teased.

"Shit, I almost forgot," Bella gasped, running into her office to grab her materials.

"Sorry baby, but I nearly forgot all about my class," she apologized when she came back to me.

"Don't worry about it darlin'," I said, kissing her forehead, "I call you tonight before you go to sleep okay?"

"Okay," she replied, "Talk to you soon, so we can plan that next date," she whispered in my ear. I groaned and the vixen just stood there and giggled.

"Do I even want to know?" Peter asked, looking amused.

"Probably not," I sighed, "I'll let ya'll get to it. Catch ya later."

"Bye," they both called after me as they walked down the hall to their classroom.

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**Later that afternoon, BPOV**

"Knock knock," someone spoke as they simultaneously knocked on my office door. I looked up and was surprised to see Charlotte standing there.

"Hey," I greeted her, motioning for her to come in and sit, "What brings you by? Peter is in class right now."

Situating herself in one of the chairs facing my desk, she sighed and I realized how stressed Charlotte looked, "I know," she said, "But I wanted to talk to you."

"Is something wrong Char?" I asked, growing sort of worried.

"Yes, no…I don't know," she said, groaning in frustration.

"Do you need me to get Peter?"

"NO!" she nearly yelled, shocking me, "I'm not ready for him to know this yet."

"Know what Charlotte? You're worrying me."

"I'm pregnant," she told me, her voice almost a whisper. My eyes widened in shock, but a smile quickly formed on my face.

"Oh Char, that's great…isn't it?"

"But it wasn't supposed to happen this soon!" she cried out, "We're not even through with school, and my parents are going to be pissed if I don't finish. Peter and I have only briefly touched on the subject of kids in passing, but what if he doesn't want it," she gasped, cradling her still-flat stomach.

"Charlotte," I said softly, and her eyes slowly rose to meet mine, "Peter loves you more than anything in this world. The man is absolutely crazy about you and I would bet you large amounts of money that he is going to be downright thrilled about that child you're carrying."

"You think so?" she asked in a small voice.

"I know so. I know the timing isn't exactly what you thought it was going to be, but hey, life happens whether we want it to or not. You're going to be an amazing mother, Char. And together with Peter you two are going to make awesome parents. I don't think you need to worry about him at all."

"Thanks, Bella," Charlotte said with a small smile, "I just took the test today when I saw the results I just kind of freaked out."

"It's perfectly understandable," I told her, "If I were in your shoes, I'd probably react the same way."

"I should get going," she said, standing up and grabbing her things, "Thanks for talking some sense into me. You're a great friend."

"It's no problem at all. You're a great friend too. I'm incredibly lucky to know both you and Peter. When do you think you're going to tell him the news?"

"I don't know, maybe tonight? Maybe I'll cook him a nice dinner or something," she mused, "Anyway, thanks for listening Bella. I'll talk to you soon."

"Bye, Charlotte, good luck!" I smiled.

I really was excited for her. Although I've only know the pair of them for a few months, I'd gotten to know them quite well and I considered them some of my best friends. Peter was like a little brother to me and Charlotte quickly became one of my best girl friends which I liked since Alice lived so far away now.

Glancing at the clock on my desk I saw that it was a little after five o'clock and amazingly enough, I somehow had managed to get caught up on all of my grading. Grabbing my tote bag, I slid my binder that held all of my lesson plans and assignments inside along with my wallet. Slipping on my coat, I gathered up all of my things, locked my office door and made my way to the faculty parking lot. As I walked, my mind drifted back to a few hours prior, when Jasper and I walked along this path to grab some lunch.

Even the awkwardness of running into his ex, Olivia, wasn't enough to dampen my spirits. I was officially Jasper Whitlock's girlfriend. The thought alone sent a shiver down my spine and tingles of desire throughout my body. I had never met anyone like Jasper; everything felt so new, exciting, but above all passionate. I didn't want to get too far ahead of myself since our relationship _was_ so new, but I couldn't help but think that I could really see myself falling for him.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all characters, etc. Twilight related. Although if I could, I'd own Jacob Black, Sam Uley, and Jasper Hale. All other characters are mine.

**Chapter Six**

**BPOV**

I groaned as I cracked my eyes open to peer out into the bright, sunlit room. Damnit I had forgotten to close the curtains last night. I was instantly thankful that I decided to take today off from work, giving me the opportunity to sleep in a bit. It was almost one in the afternoon, but I was up half the night/morning stressing over my date with Jasper tonight. Deep down, I knew I was being ridiculous about the whole thing, but I couldn't help it.

_It's just Jasper_, I tried to keep telling myself. But the only thing was, it wasn't _just_ Jasper. He was so more than that. And what was sure to come after the date, after this third date…was so much more than that.

I couldn't lie to myself anymore and pretend like Jasper Whitlock was any typical guy for me. I was falling for him. Hard. And it scared me.

It wasn't my feelings that scared me, I thought as I buried my head under my pillows, it was just the quickness of it.

On my nightstand, my phone chirped with my text tone and I peeked out from my pillow fort to check it.

_Counting down the minutes until I see you, beautiful. Can't wait. Jasper _

I sighed dreamily and replied with similar sentiments. Reluctantly, I slipped out of my comfortable bed and retreated to my closet to pack a small bag for tonight. Jasper was going to cook me dinner at the ranch and we were going to watch a movie or two. Low key, but I knew that it was like unlikely that I'd be returning home tonight. The thought sent a shiver through me.

I grabbed my small duffel bag from the top shelf of my closet and set it down open on the floor. Opting for a casual look, I stuffed a pair of old jeans and a fitted shirt supporting my college alma mater. Throwing in a change in undergarments and my Vans, I was set for tomorrow at least. Now I had to decide what to wear for tonight.

I pondered my options for a few minutes before deciding on a pair of grey skinny jeans, red button up top, and black ankle boots. I laid them out on my bed and walked into the bathroom. I almost walked towards the shower, but changed my mind, deciding to pamper myself a little with a bath. One of the main selling points for this apartment was the enormous tub it came with. Getting the water to the perfect warmth, I retrieved the wonderful smelling bath salts that I kept around for the rare occasions like this, when I actually took the time to soak in the tub.

When the bath was ready, I slipped out of my pajamas and stepped into the tub. I shamelessly moaned aloud at how amazing the water felt as it swept over my body. I leaned my head against the headrest and reveled in the warmth that consumed by body for a few minutes.

Some time later I realized it was time for me to get back out, considering I drifted off into sleep a few times out of sheer relaxation. Standing up, I shivered as the cooler air hit my wet body and I quickly reached for the large bath towel on the hook next to the tub. I wrapped it tightly around my body and stepped out onto the cool tile floor.

I heard my cell phone ringing distantly in the bedroom so I walked back out to go get it. It stopped ringing just as I got to the nightstand, but I was shocked to see that I had almost 10 missed calls from my mom, dad, and Michael each. Instantly worried, I frantically dialed by mom back. She answered after just two rings.

"Bella? Bella, you need to come home! Please," my mom rushed out, her words barely coherent as she forced them out hysterically.

"Mom? What's wrong? Calm down, what's going on?" I panicked.

"It's Oliver honey, he's in the hospital," she told me and I felt my legs give out as I sat back on the bed.

"What?" I gasped, "What happened?"

"Michael and I went to the grocery store and we were unloading everything in the driveway. Oliver was helping us when some fruit fell out of the bag and rolled down the driveway. I told Oliver not to worry about grabbing them, but he didn't listen and didn't see the car coming by…," Mom said before her voice cracked.

"Oh my god," I whimpered, "Is he going to be okay?"

"I don't know baby, he's still in with the doctors. Michael is barely holding it together."

"Is he nearby? Can you put him on the phone?" I said, swallowing the lump in my throat.

"Bee?" I heard my baby brother cry into the phone and I felt my heart break into little pieces. Bee was what he used to call me when we were kids.

"Hey Mikey," I said, using my childhood nickname for him too, "I'm coming home. I'll be there soon."

"His little body…oh god, Bella…," he whimpered.

"He's going to be okay Mikey. I know it," I told him, desperately trying to believe my own words, "Be strong baby brother. I'll be there soon, I love you Michael."

"Love you too Bee."

Hanging up the phone, I immediately called Jasper and left him a hurried message explaining why I had to cancel our date. Running around my apartment, I threw on jeans and a hoodie and slipped on my Vans. I grabbed the duffle I had originally packed for tonight and threw in a few more days' worth of clothing.

Strapping my duffel bag over my shoulder, I double checked everything, making sure I had my wallet, keys, and anything else I might need. I nearly sprinted down to my truck, throwing everything inside before climbing in and heading out in the direction of the airport. It seemed like everyone in the area knew I was in a hurry and decided to come out on the highway to drive as slow as molasses.

After the almost twenty minute drive, I was parked in the long term parking lot, since I didn't know exactly how long I would be in Seattle. I was standing in line at the ticket counter, tapping my foot nervously when I heard something unexpected.

"Bella!" I heard a male voice call out. Confused, I looked around and gasped when I saw Jasper running through the doors with a bag thrown over his shoulder.

"Jasper?" I asked in disbelief as he reached me in the line, excusing himself to the folks in line behind me, "What on earth are you doing here?"

"I got your message," he said, between deep breaths, "I know how much your nephew means to you and I didn't want you to have to go through all of this by yourself. I'm sorry for just inviting myself along, I can leave if you'd like me to…"

I silenced his words with a searing kiss. Dropping my bags to the floor, I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck as his strong arms wound their way around my waist.

"Thank you," I whispered when we finally separated, "It means the world to me that you drove all the way to come with me to Seattle."

"Where else would I be? As soon as I heard your message I grabbed some clothes and ran out the door to my truck. I knew you would be worried and I didn't want you to have to deal with all of that alone."

"Next please," the employee at the counter said, summoning us forward, "How may I help you?"

"Yes, we'd like two tickets for your next flight to Seattle please," I told her.

"Round trip or one way?"

"One way."

"First class or coach?"

"First class," Jasper said and I raised my eyebrows at him. Silently, he grabbed my hand and squeezed it as he kissed my forehead, effectively distracting me long enough to hand the woman his credit card.

"No arguments darlin', let me do this for you," he whispered and couldn't help but nod.

The woman handed our tickets to Jasper along with his credit card, wishing us a pleasant flight. I tried to smile genuinely, but I just couldn't do it. We made it through security fairly quickly and made our way down to our gate since our flight was set to begin boarding in 45 minutes. We found two seats together by our gate and we sat down.

"Are you hungry?" Jasper asked me. His words causing my stomach growl loudly, making me realize that I hadn't eaten anything all day.

"A little," I said with a small smile.

"There's a small restaurant across the way, I'll go get us something," he told me, "I'll be right back."

While Jasper was gone I sent a text to both my parents telling them when I would be getting into Seattle. My dad asked if he needed to come to the airport to pick me up, but I told him that I was going to rent a car. I figured it would be easier not to mention Jasper coming just yet. They all hard more important things to worry about than who was accompanying me back home. I texted Alice as well just to let her know what was going on.

Jasper came back then with two containers of food with two bottled drinks cradled in his arm.

"I got you a chicken sandwich with fries and some buffalo wings, I figured we could share from both, if that's okay," he said as I took the drinks from him so he could sit down without jostling anything.

"That's fine baby," I told him, leaning over the armrest of the airport seats to kiss his cheek. We immediately dug into the food which probably only tasted as good as it did because I was so hungry. Jasper threw his arm around my shoulders as we ate and together we finished off the food. As I walked over to the trashcan to dispose of our trash, I heard them call for our flight to begin boarding. Since we were first class passengers, we were first and I walked back to Jasper to gather our things.

Once we were on the plane, I could easily see that I could definitely get used to this first class travel thing. There was so much leg room!

After everyone had boarded and we were making our ascent into the Texas sky, I leaned over and looped my arm through Jasper's, resting my head on his shoulder.

"I'm scared Jasper," I muttered, just loud enough for him to hear me.

"I know honey," he sighed, bringing his other hand up to cup my cheek. I picked my head up and he bent his head down to kiss my lips softly.

Laying my head back down, I felt myself begin to drift off with the hum of the plane lulling me to sleep.

Awhile later I was nudged awake by Jasper, "Wake up darlin'."

"How long was I out?" I asked.

"Almost the entire flight," he told me, "We'll be landing in Seattle in about 10 minutes."

"You should've woken me up," I said, "It had to have been a boring flight with me sleeping."

"It was fine," he assured me, "I was perfectly fine just holding you."

The sudden urge to tell Jasper three words that would change everything suddenly overwhelmed me. The fact that I had to stop them from so easily flowing out shocked me. Could I really be in love with Jasper?

I smiled at him instead and buried my head in his shoulder.

Yes. Yes, I could.

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**JPOV**

We landed in Seattle around 10:30 in the evening, and we took the shuttle to the rental car desk. Bella was adamant that I wouldn't pay for the car as well so I relented and we agreed to pay half and half. After what felt like hours, the clerk handed us the keys to a small compact car and Bella and I went to retrieve it. Bella had barely spoken a word since we landed in her home state but I didn't push anything. She had to be so worried right now for her brother and nephew.

Bella gave me the address for the hospital they were at, so I punched it into the GPS and pulled out onto the damp Seattle streets. I reached for Bella's hand over the center console and she gripped it tightly. It only took us about 15 minutes to arrive at the hospital.

"Do you want me to drop you off so you can go on in?" I asked.

"No," she shook her head, "Stay with me, please."

"Always," I told her, not caring how cheesy it may have sounded. I pulled into the parking deck and finally found a parking spot. Hand in hand, Bella and I walked into the hospital heading towards the floor that Bella's dad told her they were on.

I couldn't help the fear and nerves I felt when I remembered that I would be meeting Bella's family. I knew that they would all be more concerned about little Oliver's well-being but knowing that Bella's dad was a cop scared me.

The second we reached the waiting room, Bella's hand flew out of mine as she launched herself at her parents. I held back and watched the exchange, not really knowing what to do. Bella had her mom in a tight embrace and her dad had his hands on both of their shoulders. I couldn't get a good look at Renee other than her blondish-brown hair, but Charlie was a tall man, probably standing close to my six foot two frame. His dark brown hair was peppered with fleck of gray, but he still had traces of his youth in his face. I could see that Bella got her eyes from her father as well as the hair color, but her small stature was all her mother.

Bella stepped back from their embrace and motioned me over. I inhaled a deep breath and walked over.

"Mom, Dad, this is my boyfriend Jasper," she said, slipping her arm around my waist.

"Thank you so much for coming with Bella," her mom gushed, pulling into me into a hug. Her embrace was so gentle and motherly that it brought back memories of my own mother. We pulled back and Charlie stuck in hand out to me.

"Sir," I greeted, taking his hand firmly in mine.

"How long have you been dating my daughter Jasper?" he asked with a stern look on his face.

"Since the New Year, but we've only made it official recently."

"And you decided to travel all this way with her?"

"Bella's important to me. I think the world of her and I knew how much Oliver means to her. I didn't want her going through this alone."

I felt Bella's arm around me tighten, but I held my ground.

Charlie looked at me for a few seconds, searching for something in my face that might show him I wasn't serious about Bella. He obviously didn't find it and he sighed, "Call me Charlie."

"Dad, was that really necessary?" Bella chided, rolling her eyes.

"You're my baby girl; I have to make sure you're being taken care of. I can't exactly do that when you live so far away."

"Okay, daddy," she laughed, giving him a hug, "Can we go see Oliver? What are the doctor's saying?"

"They haven't told us anything in a while. Oliver's in surgery right now, he had some swelling in his brain."

"Oh god," Bella whimpered and I held her close.

"Visiting hours are over, but Michael is the only one allowed back there since he's his father. But he's down in the cafeteria getting coffee now. He should be back any minute now."

"He's back now," a deep voice said in the doorway.

"Michael!" Bella cried out. She ran over and hugged her brother, nearly causing him to spill his coffee.

It was very easy to see the resemblance between Bella and her brother. Had I not known that they were seven years apart, I would have almost thought they were fraternal twins. His hair was a few shades lighter than Bella's, mimicking Renee rather than Charlie. Michael was about an inch or two taller than Bella though.

"How are you Mikey?" Bella asked him, smoothing his hair down.

"I'm okay," he shrugged, his chin quivering slightly, "I'm so scared Bee."

"I know," she told him, holding him tight. It was plain to see that Bella and Michael weren't just siblings, they were best friends.

I stood back with Bella's parents, giving them their time to themselves. Michael made eye contact at me and looked confused so Bella motioned me over again.

"Michael, this is Jasper, my boyfriend."

"It's nice to meet you Michael. I only wish it were under better circumstances," I told him, shaking his hand.

"Thanks for coming with Bella," he told me. I could see that he was exhausted from worry and stress over his son or else he'd be interrogating me like Charlie probably wanted to.

"Where else would I be?" I shrugged, kissing her temple.

"Mr. Swan," a voice said from the hallway.

An elderly doctor in a white coat approached us and stood in front of Michael.

"What is it? How's Oliver?" Michael asked rapidly, panicking.

"Oliver is out of surgery and in recovery. We got the swelling under control, but he's still unconscious. At this point, this is just his body's natural way of healing itself."

"So what does this mean? Is he going to be okay?" he asked the doctor.

"I have no reason to believe that Oliver won't have a positive outcome right now. Until he wakes up we can treat the few broken bones he has. Once he does wake up, which I sincerely believe he will when he's ready, there's a minimal risk but in my professional opinion, your son is going to be just fine."

We all released a huge sigh of relief and Michael thanked the kind doctor profusely. Bella sunk back into a nearby chair and cried tears of happiness for her nephew. I sat down next to her and she automatically leaned her body into me. We watched as Michael tearfully hugged his parents.

We all looked up when we heard footsteps running down the hallway.

A man entered the waiting room with a worried look on his face, but he was unfamiliar to me. He was tall and lean with bronze colored hair. An emotion I wasn't quite sure I liked flickered over his face when his eyes landed on my Bella.

Bella audibly gasped when she saw the man walk in.

"Bella, I came as soon as Alice told me you were here. I know how much Oliver means to you."

Bella's eyes narrowed slightly as did her family's and she slowly stood up. She looked confused but also a little put off that this man was here in the hospital.

"What are you doing here, Edward?" she finally asked.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer- Usual disclaimers apply. I own nothing.**

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**Chapter Seven**

**BPOV**

"What are you doing here, Edward?" I asked, standing up. I had no idea why Edward was even in Seattle, much less standing here in front of me.

"I was catching up with Alice and she mentioned Oliver and I wanted to be here."

"What are you even doing in Seattle?"

"I'm doing my residency here," he explained, "How are you, how's Oliver?"

I couldn't even grasp the situation happening right now. Edward and I had been over for months, why on Earth would he come here? God, I could only imagine what was going through Jasper's mind right now.

"I'm fine," I sighed, "Oliver is going to be okay too," I told him, keeping things as vague as possible.

"So his prognosis is good, that's great."

"I don't see how this is any of your business," Michael spoke up. He never did seem to care much for Edward when we were together.

"I'm just here for Bella," Edward said, throwing his hands up, "I needed to be sure you were okay," he told me, opening his arms to embrace me. As subtle as I could, I stepped back and angled my body towards Jasper who had stood up and moved closer to me. Jasper placed a hand on the small of my back and I smiled at the warmth that flowed through me at his touch. No matter how much I may have cared for Edward, he never made me feel this way. I didn't want to hurt him, but it was inappropriate for him to come here.

"Edward, I'd like you to meet my boyfriend Jasper Whitlock," I said softly. Edward's face instantly crumpled but he quickly put on a smile.

"Hi, I'm Edward Cullen," he said, extending his hand. Jasper grasped it and I tried not to giggle when Edward winced slightly at his grip.

"So how long have you two been together?" he asked us.

"Not long, but I'm very fortunate to have found Bella," Jasper replied, pulling me into his side. Our height difference allowed for a perfect fit as always.

"Yes, Bella is something else, that's for sure. The four years we were together were amazing," Edward said and Jasper narrowed his eyes at him. What was he thinking? I cut my eyes over at him and gave him a harsh look. Surely Edward couldn't still be pining away for me after all this time?

"Edward, can I talk to you alone for a minute?" I said quickly. Jasper's arm around my waist tightened.

"Of course, Bells," he said.

I turned to Jasper and kissed his cheek. He hesitated for a moment before releasing me from his grasp. He gave me a small smile, which I returned. I glanced at my family before following Edward out into the hallway and their faces were concerned.

When Edward and I were out of ear shot and I spun around to face him.

"Why the hell would you come here Edward? This is a stressful time for me and my family. It's inappropriate for you to have come here unannounced."

"You let Jasper be here," he accused.

"Because he is my boyfriend!" I exclaimed causing some nurses to turn at the commotion.

"You can't just throw away what we had Bella," Edward pleaded, "I miss you."

"Things are over between us Edward," I sighed, "They have been for a while."

"I don't buy that," he argued.

"What don't you buy?" I asked, "We've been over for months."

"We could be so great Bella…just give us another chance."

"Do you hear yourself right now? We broke up the first time because you couldn't handle the separation. Guess what? You're in Seattle, I'm in Texas…the distance would still be there. What we had was good when we had it Edward, but it's over. I'm with Jasper. He makes me happy. It wasn't right for you to come here uninvited. I'm sorry, but I'd like you to leave."

"You don't mean that…," he said sadly.

"Please Edward…just go," I told him, turning around and walking back to the waiting room. I immediately returned to Jasper who was gazing out a window. I stepped up closely behind him and slid my arms around his waist. I pressed my lips between his shoulder blades and held him tightly. I felt his body relax with my touch and maneuvered myself so that I was now in front of him. I cupped his face in my hands and made his eyes meet mine.

"I asked him to leave," I told Jasper, "It wasn't right for him to come here like this. Regardless of what he thinks our relationship was like, it's over between us. I'd never known true happiness until I met you Jasper Whitlock. It's only you."

Jasper's eyes softened at my words and he held me tightly against him.

"You're mine," he whispered, making the words sound sweet, not possessive, "I love you Bella Swan."

I abruptly pulled back to look at him, "What?" I gasped.

"I know it's soon, but I can't change how I feel," he explained, smoothing down my hair with his hand, "I love you. You changed my life the moment I met you."

"Oh Jasper," I melted, "I love you too, so much."

Stretching up on my toes, I pressed my lips to his. For those few brief moments I forgot everything else going on around us and focused solely on this amazing man kissing me breathless.

I heard a throat clear and I sheepishly poked my head around Jasper to see my parents and brother smirking at me.

"What?" I laughed.

"I guess 'Welcome to the Family' would be more appropriate?" my mom joked to the two of us. She walked over and embraced Jasper, "Thank you for making my daughter so happy."

"It's my pleasure, ma'am," he smiled. My dad simply walked over and clapped him on the shoulder. It was sort of his unspoken fatherly acceptance in a way.

"Son, do you want us to stay here with you tonight?" Dad asked Michael. Now that we knew Oliver wasn't in such critical condition, I guess my parents were thinking of heading home to get some sleep.

"I'll be fine here," he assured us, "Visiting hours are stupid and say that I'm the only one that can see him anyway. You guys go home and get some sleep."

"Are you sure honey?" my mom asked.

"Yeah, you guys head on out. I'm going to go back and sit with Oliver for a bit."

"Okay, well call us if you need anything. We'll be back first thing in the morning."

"I'll see you in the morning Mikey," I told my brother, hugging him.

Together with my parents, Jasper and I walked back through the hospital to the parking deck.

"You're not staying in a hotel are you?" Mom asked me when we reached our rental car. Their car was parked not far away, "Please say you're staying at home with us."

"Honestly, we didn't really think that far ahead," I told her. I looked at Jasper and asked, "Would you mind?"

"I wouldn't want to impose," he told my parents sweetly.

"Nonsense, honey, we've got plenty of room. Right Charlie?"

My dad grunted his response, obvious in his dislike of Jasper staying under the same room as me. Silly Dad, I can't stay his pigtailed, gap toothed little girl forever.

"It's settled then," Mom said happily, "Bella you still remember how to get there right?"

"Yes, Mom," I said, rolling my eyes, "It hasn't been that long since I've lived here."

"Alright," she said, walking with my dad to their car.

"Your parents are great," Jasper said when we got in the rental.

"They are. I just wish I were seeing them are less depressing terms," I sighed.

"The doctors said that Oliver was going to be alright, that's good."

"Yeah I know, I just don't like the idea of him being unconscious for any period of time. He's a little baby in my eyes," I said as we pulled back out onto the Seattle streets. By now there were barely any cars on the road since it was the middle of the night. I directed Jasper in the direction of Bellevue, where my parents lived and I grew up. In an odd sort of way I missed the constantly damp streets and cloudy skies, but I loved living with the sunshine more. But, this would always be my hometown.

Jasper and I sat in a companionable silence until we got to the house and I directed him to pull into the driveway behind my parents' car.

"Nice place," he noted, putting the car in park. Between my dad's salary as Seattle's police chief and my mom's as a nurse, we always did okay financially. They weren't filthy rich by any means, but they were able to afford the necessities for Michael and I as well as put a nice roof over our heads. My parents raised us to be appreciative of what we had, and I was. My childhood home was a two-story, five bedroom house in a middle class neighborhood. Growing up, the two spare bedrooms were used as a guest room and a home office for my dad. Now, the office space doubles as the guest room and the other is now Oliver's room.

Mom and Dad had already gone inside so Jasper and I grabbed our bags from the trunk and walked through the unlocked front door.

"You two go on up and get some sleep, I just cleaned up Bella's old room last week so everything should be good," Mom told us when we walked in the foyer.

"Renee," my dad started to protest.

"Mrs. Swan, I'll be perfectly fine with sleeping a guest room; the couch even," Jasper told her.

"Nonsense," she waved him off, "Bella's not a child anymore and you two love each other. Go. And call me Renee."

I blushed deeply and avoided my father's eyes as I made my way upstairs, hearing Jasper follow behind me.

"Awkward," I sang out once we were in my old bedroom. Jasper simply smiled and set his bags down at the foot of my queen sized bed.

"Nice room," he told me.

"Thanks," I breathed, still not quite believing that he was actually here in Washington with me.

"Thank you so much for coming here with me. You have no idea how much it truly means to me," I told him after setting my bags down as well and walking over to stand in front of him.

"You're welcome," he replied softly, snaking a hand around my neck to cup my face and pull me towards him. Our lips were soft and gentle, barely making contact, but it was enough to send a fire through my body. God, I loved this man.

Jasper pulled away though and said, "You're probably exhausted, let's get some sleep."

Now that he mentioned it, I realized just how dead on my feet I really was. I nodded and pull a t-shirt and leggings out of my bag. I paused, not necessarily knowing what to do next. Sure, Jasper has seen me naked more than once, but things were different now.

He caught on to my thought process, "I'll um, just turn around."

After his back was towards me, I made quick work of removing my clothes and slipping on a sports bra before putting on my PJs.

"Okay," I said when I was ready, "You can turn around now."

Jasper turned back around and we locked eyes for only a moment before he proceeded to change as well. He removed everything but his boxers, but slipped on a plain white t-shirt. I somehow managed not to pout at him covering up his gorgeous body. But I knew that it was needed so that we could maintain some control over ourselves. Despite my overwhelming desire for him, we were both exhausted.

I slipped under the covers and burrowed myself into their warmth. Jasper folded the clothes he just removed and placed them on top of his bag before joining me. The moment his body was in the bed with me, my body instantly gravitated towards him. I curled into him as his strong arms wound their way around me.

I felt him press his lips into my hair, "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too," I nearly slurred, already drifting off.

"Goodnight baby," I heard him say before finally succumbing to sleep.

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I woke the next morning to find my mother standing beside the bed, smiling at me.

"Mom, what are you doing?" I asked softly, not wanting to wake Jasper. During the night we had shifted into a spooning position and he was wrapped around me tightly.

"It's nine o'clock. I know it's early, but we wanted to get back to the hospital. Your dad and I are making some breakfast, it should be ready soon."

"Oh, okay," I said, "Give us some time to get ourselves awake and ready and we'll be down in a few," I told her.

"Alright baby. It sure is good to have you home again," she smiled, "I miss you."

"I miss you too Mom. We'll be down in a bit."

Mom nodded and walked out, heading back downstairs. As soon as the door clicked shut, I felt Jasper stir behind me.

"Mmm, good morning," he said, in a gravelly voice that did interesting things to me.

"Good morning baby," I said, rolling over so that I was facing him. I gave him a quick peck on the lips and snuggled into his warm embrace.

"My parents are making breakfast downstairs," I said after a few quiet moments, "I think they want to head back over to the hospital as soon as possible."

"Sounds good," Jasper said, sitting up, "Would you like to shower first?"

"We could always save time and water…," I hinted and Jasper immediately caught on.

"I like your thinking darlin'," he smirked, grabbing my hand and pulling me out of bed and towards the en suite bathroom. Jasper turned on the shower and adjusted the water's temperature.

Facing each other, I reached out and pulled Jasper's t-shirt over his head, exposing his flawlessly toned abdomen. Stepping out of his boxers leaving him naked and looking absolutely divine, he made quick work of undressing me as well. Finally, we were both naked and Jasper pulled me into the shower with him, the warm water cascading down and over our bodies.

Jasper reached for the shampoo and lathered it up in his hands before washing my hair for me. I sighed as his hands ran through my hair. No one had ever done this for me and it felt heavenly. After Jasper had thoroughly washed my body, I repeated the actions for him, somehow keeping our libidos sort of in check. We couldn't help but let a few less than innocent touches take place. He had to bend to accommodate for our height difference.

I turned off the water once we were through and stepped out to grab some towels from the linen closet. We dried each other off and went back out into the bedroom to get dressed.

"You ready to go downstairs?" Jasper asked me when we were fully clothed.

"Of course," I answered, taking his hand. Together we walked downstairs and joined my parents in the kitchen. My Dad was at the stove making scrambled eggs, and my Mom was making some toast.

"Morning Daddy," I said, walking over to the stove and kissing his cheek.

"Good Morning sweetie, did you sleep well?" he asked, pulling me into his side.

"I did," I answered.

"Did you sleep okay Jasper?" Mom asked.

"Yes ma'am, I did," he told her, sitting down at the breakfast bar.

"Good. Come have some breakfast, we've got scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and sausage."

"It smells amazing, thank you," he told her. I stepped away and began to fix Jasper a plate.

"You didn't have to do that darlin'," he told me as I set it in front of him. I retrieved the orange juice from the fridge and poured some for him in a glass.

"I know," I shrugged, "But I wanted to," I told him, kissing him on the cheek.

I turned around to fix myself some food, but my dad was right there holding one for me.

"Thanks Daddy," I giggled before kissing his cheek as well, joining Jasper at the breakfast bar.

The four of us ate breakfast together, my parents asking Jasper the typical getting to know you questions.

"So, Jasper what is it you do for a living?" my dad asked him.

"I'm an architect, sir," he answered.

"You make a good living doing that?" he asked sternly. _Really Dad_…

"I'd like to think so. I own the company along with two of my friends from school."

"But you don't live in Austin like Bella goes?"

"No sir, I live on my family's ranch not far from the city. It's where I grew up. I like the slower pace, the simplicity of it all."

"What about your parents, what are they doing?"

I tensed at my father's question, but Jasper took it in stride, "They passed away when I was 16."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Dad said, clearing his throat awkwardly. In another room, my mom's cell phone rang and she excused herself to answer it.

The three of us sat silently, and a few minutes later Mom returned.

"That was Michael," she said looking sort of shell-shocked.

"Mom, what is it? What's wrong?"

"Oliver's awake," she told us.

I exhaled a huge breath of air, and I felt Jasper's arms around me.

"Well, let's go!" I finally said.

"Oh, right right," she said, removing herself from my dad's embrace, "Let's get going."

We all piled into my mom's Toyota Sienna van and drove back down to the hospital. We all rushed upstairs to the children's ward. Michael met us out in the hallway.

"How's Oliver?" I asked him.

"He's awake and was confused when he woke up, but he seems okay. The doctors say he's going to be fine."

"Oh thank God," I said, hugging him, "Can we go in and see him?"

"Of course, yeah come on."

We all followed Michael into the room and I smiled when I saw my little nephew sitting up in the bed.

"Auntie Bewwa!" he yelled in excitement, throwing his arms up. My eyes filled with tears and I rushed over to embrace his little body tightly.

"Hey there little man," I said, kissing the top of his head, "You scared your auntie, you know that?"

"I sorry," he giggled, and my heart skipped a beat. I loved this little guy so much.

Motioning for Jasper, I felt him approach and I told Oliver, "Oliver, this is Auntie Bella's friend, Jasper. He came all the way from Texas with me to see you. Can you say hi?"

"Hi, Jaspwer…," he said and I knew he already had Jasper hooked as well.

"Hi there buddy. I'm glad to see you're okay. We were all so worried about you."

"Are you Auntie Bewwa's special friend? Like Grandma and Grandpa?" he asked innocently. We all giggled and I shook my head.

"Not quite like grandma and grandpa," I told him, "But he is very special to me."

I felt Jasper place his hand on my back and I looked up at him with a smile. Mom and Dad proceeded to shower Oliver with their love, so we stood back and watched. My heart felt impossibly full as I watched my family interact. Jasper pressed his lips into my hair and I heard him murmur, "I love your family."

I simply smiled and nestled further into his body.

"But I love you more," he whispered.

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**A/N: Oh, gotta love the cheesiness *wink* Hope you enjoyed!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

**BPOV**

"Auntie Bewwa, when is Jassy coming?" Oliver asked me. Michael and I were sitting in the room with him; we wanted some brother and sister time. We had been in Seattle for three days now and Jasper had definitely bonded with Oliver. They were nearly inseparable and it was absolutely adorable to see especially with Oliver's nickname "Jassy."

Jasper wasn't too keen on the nickname, but understood that his name was probably hard for him to pronounce right now.

"Grandma and Jasper are running some errands, they'll be here later," I told him. Jasper had definitely won over my mother with his Southern charm. She took him hostage today and has him helping her run errands in preparation for tonight's family dinner. Oliver would be getting released from the hospital later today so we were planning a celebration of sorts.

"Do you want to get some coffee?" Michael asked.

"Sure," I replied.

"Oliver buddy, your aunt and I are going to go get some coffee, we'll be back in a few minutes okay? I'll get Nurse Susan to come in and sit with you," Michael told his son. I just beamed at him; he was such a great father.

"Okay, daddy. I love you."

"I love you son," he choked out, kissing his forehead. Michael released a heavy sigh when we stepped out into the hallway. We asked Susan to step in to sit with him as we left for a few moments.

"I almost lost him, Bee," he gasped.

"Oh Mikey," I said, pulling him into a hug. We remained in the embrace for a few moments.

"I'm so proud of you, little brother," I told him, "You're such an amazing father to that little boy."

"Thanks, sis," he smiled, "So you and Jasper huh?" he asked as we reached the coffee machine.

"Yeah," I blushed.

"You're different with him. It's something to see that's for sure. Is he good to you?" he asked.

I smiled and nodded, "Jasper is amazing. I've very blessed to have him."

"What was all of that with Edward the other day? I haven't gotten a chance to ask you about that."

"Ugh, _that_, was Edward being deluded into thinking that he and I still have a chance," I sighed.

"Seriously? You guys have been over for almost a year now. What is he even doing in Seattle?"

"His residency for medical school," I explained, taking a sip of my coffee, "In this very hospital."

"Damn. Small world."

"Right?"

"You're completely over him though right?"

"I am. I'm disappointed in his behavior the other day, but it doesn't mean I want to see him hurt."

"You're far too kind for your own good," Michael commented.

"I spent four years of my life thinking I was in love with Edward. I'm only realizing now that what he and I had didn't even come to close to being love."

"And you know this how?" he asked, with a smirk on his face.

"I'm in love with Jasper," I said matter of factly.

"That's great, Bee," Michael told me, giving me a tight hug, "He seems like a great man."

"He is," I gushed, "I love him so much."

"You love him?" I heard a familiar voice gasp from around the corner. I spun around to see Edward standing there with a pained look on his face. What the hell is he doing?

"Edward," I sighed, "What are you doing? Eavesdropping on people's conversations now?"

"I was just carrying these records to another doctor on this floor, and I saw you and Michael walking down the hall, that's all. Bella, you can't be serious about this? You barely know this guy, and you love him? What about us Bella? Do those four years mean nothing?"

"Michael, would you excuse us for a minute," I said through gritted teeth, "I need to speak with Edward alone."

"Are you sure Bells?" he asked, shifting his gaze from me to Edward, narrowing his eyes.

"I'm sure, I won't be long."

Grabbing the material of Edward's scrubs, I yanked him over to an empty waiting area.

"Edward, I am very sorry if I've ever given you the impression that what we had was salvageable, but this is just ridiculous. You can't just ambush me out of no where and try and convince me that we belong together. We don't, okay? I'm very sorry, but we don't."

"No Bella, you don't mean that," he shook his head, and I sighed heavily. I hated to hurt him, but he needed to understand that things were completely over between us.

"Yes, I do, Edward. We've been over for almost a year. I'm with Jasper now, and I love him very much. So please…just stop rehashing all of this," I nearly pleaded.

"But Bella, I love you," he countered.

"I'm sure you do Edward…"

"You don't love me anymore?" he asked me. I knew my words were going to hurt Edward badly, but they needed to be said.

"No Edward…I don't. I'm sorry."

"I see," he said tersely, "I'm sorry, I've been such a bother to you. I'll leave you alone now," he muttered before turning around and walking down the hall. I bit back tears that threatened to fall at the bluntness in my words, but it was the only way he'd listen.

A few moments later, I heard a voice in the doorway that sent tingles up my spine, "Bella? Are you okay?"

"Hey Jasper," I smiled sadly, "I'm fine baby."

"Are you sure?" he asked, walking over and placing his hands on my waist, his thumbs coming in contact with a sliver of skin above the waistband of my jeans, "I saw Edward heading down the opposite direction, did he approach you again?"

"He did, but I think I finally got through to him," I told him, "He asked me if I still loved him. I was honest and told him that I didn't. He was obviously hurt by my words, but I hope he got the message."

"I'm sorry you had to do that, though I'm not sorry for your reasoning," Jasper smirked, "I love you."

"I love you too," I said, kissing his soft lips. Jasper's rough, calloused hands found their way to my neck and into my hair, tangling themselves in it as Jasper held me to him. Feeling his hands slightly tugging on my hair felt so amazing, causing me to groan. I opened my mouth to him and the feel of our tongues dancing together sent a delicious chill through my body.

I searched for the will to pull away from Jasper; this wasn't the time or place to start something like this. Sighing, I managed to do so and I rested my forehead against Jasper's chest. I felt his lips press into my hair and I smiled. He made me deliriously happy.

I moved my arms to fit around Jasper's waist, "Let's go see Oliver. He's itching to go home already. He's been asking about you all morning."

"He has?"

"I think you've made quite the impression on my nephew," I told him as we walked back down the hospital hallway.

"He's an amazing little boy."

"Jassy!" Oliver exclaimed when he saw us enter the room.

"Hey little man," Jasper replied, walking to his bedside and giving him a high-five. I think my heart actually skipped a beat.

"Where were you?"

"I was helping your Grandma get things ready for you to come home, I bet you're excited," Jasper replied and Oliver nodded his head enthusiastically. At that moment, the nurse walked in with a smile on her face.

"Hey there buddy," she greeted Oliver, "Guess who gets to go home a little early?"

"Me?" Oliver squealed, making all of us laugh.

"That's right," the nurse told him, "The doctor says you're all set to go after your daddy signs these forms."

"Is there anything I need to look out for when he gets home? Anything regarding his casts and things?" Michael asked, taking the stack of papers.

"Everything you need to know is in that stack of papers," the nurse assured him, "Just sign the forms with the sticky tab on them and return them to us. Of course, if you have any questions or concerns, just give us a call."

"Thank you so much," Michael told her, getting to work on the papers.

"Aunty Bewwa, I'm going home!" Oliver said, trying to jump out of bed.

"Oh no you don't bud," I told him, sitting next to him on the bed, "You still need to be careful with your casts. We don't want you getting hurt again."

"Okay," he sighed dramatically and I kissed his forehead. Oliver snuggled his little body against mine and all felt right in the world at that moment. Jasper's phone chirped in his pocket and I watched him hit ignore with a confused expression on his face. I didn't think much of it as he slid his phone back into his pocket and smiled at me.

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"Jasper, where are you taking me?" I giggled from the passenger seat of our rental car. It was the day after Oliver had been released from the hospital and Jasper had taken me hostage. I think he had some help considering he had never been to Seattle before. I was currently sitting blindfolded in the seat as Jasper drove. My mother had helped me pick out my outfit; I think she was in on this surprise. I was wearing tight black skinny jeans and a flowy white top with red booties on my feet. I had packed my trusty black leather jacket though, so I had that to complete my ensemble. The entire outfit was purchased a few hours prior considering when I was rushing to get here, I basically just threw in some t-shirts and jeans.

"You'll see soon enough baby," I heard Jasper chuckle. Evil, sexy man.

"I don't like surprises you know."

"You'll like this one."

"What makes you so sure?" I asked, only halfway teasing him.

"Because I know you. Just relax, we'll be there soon."

I huffed and angled my body towards the window. I jumped minutely as Jasper reached over and took my left hand in his. Slipping his fingers through mine, he squeezed and I was powerless against the affects he had on me. I smiled to myself and relished in his warmth that flooded over me; flowing from where our bodies were connected. A few minutes later, I felt the car slow to a stop and the engine was cut off.

"Are we here?" I asked, curiously.

"We are. Just sit tight, I'll be back in a moment," Jasper told me, breaking our contact and getting out of the car. I shivered at the sudden chill and awkwardly sat there totally blind waiting for Jasper to return.

A few moments later, I heard my car door open and the chill of the night washed over me and I felt Jasper take my hand to help me out of the vehicle.

"I'm going to take your blindfold off now," he told me. When my eyes opened and adjusted to having vision again, I smiled at what I found. We were standing outside of the Seattle Central Library, where I spent a lot of my youth when I lived here.

"What are we doing here?" I asked Jasper.

"Look closer," he said, gesturing towards a banner hanging nearby.

"No way!" I exclaimed when I saw what he was referring to. One of my favorite authors was giving a reading and book signing inside the library tonight. I had just assigned one of their novels for my students.

"I thought you might like it, since you had been talking about that book lately for your class. If you don't want to go in, we don't have to, we can just go straight to dinner…," Jasper rambled but I silenced him with a kiss.

"I love this, thank you," I assured him when we parted.

Jasper smiled and placed his hand on the small of my back, walking us towards the entrance, "Shall we?"

"We shall," I giggled, looping my arm through his.

"Bella!" I heard someone call out when we got inside of the library. I turned in the direction of the help desk and saw Mrs. Cope, the elderly librarian who I had grown close to many years ago. We still exchanged emails from time to time, but I hadn't seen her since I moved to Florida.

"Mrs. Cope, how are you?" I asked as she walked around the desk to embrace me.

"I'm just fine sweetie, how are you? Still in Florida?"

"I'm doing well; I actually live in Texas now," I told her, "I'm teaching English at UT-Austin."

"That's wonderful," Mrs. Cope smiled, "And who is this fine young man with you?"

"Oh, this is my boyfriend Jasper," I said, "He's an architect in Austin."

"It's a pleasure to meet you ma'am," Jasper spoke, extending his hand to her. And I thought his drawl had _me_ swooning; Mrs. Cope looked like she might collapse.

"Likewise, dear," she replied, "What brings you two back here to Seattle?"

"We had a scare with Oliver, he was sit by a car a few days ago," I told her and she gasped.

"Oh no, is he alright?"

"He's got some broken bones, but he got extremely lucky. We're all very thankful."

"That's wonderful," Mrs. Cope smiled, "So I take it you're here for the book signing then?"

"We are," Jasper said.

"Well I'll let you two get over there then. Bella, it was wonderful seeing you again," she said, hugging me tightly once more, "And it was wonderful meeting you Jasper."

"Likewise," he replied and we made our way through the stacks of books, back to where the reading was being held.

The author held my attention throughout the reading and despite my protests, Jasper whipped out his credit card to buy her latest book for me to get signed. I was giddy with a kind of excitement usually reserved for musicians and actors, but for me it was for literature. That all came crashing when I saw the author ogling Jasper. Shooting her a glare, I practically dragged him out of there. Once back at the car, I was fuming, but Jasper just stood there looking amused.

"Did you see that? UGH. The nerve! You were obviously there with me," I said, pacing next to the rental car.

"Baby, calm down. You know, I only have eyes for you," he assured me, placing his hands on my arms.

"I know that," I sighed, "But it seems like everyone has eyes for you as well."

"I could care less about them. I love you. Only you, Bella."

I raised my gaze to meet his and I was suddenly drowning his the depth of the emotion held in his eyes. He crushed his mouth to mine and I felt my back hit the car as Jasper pinned me in his embrace. Off in the distance I heard a car horn honk and we were snapped back to reality. Our breaths were labored as we stood on the busy Seattle street.

"We should get to dinner," Jasper finally said. It seemed as though the sexual tension that had been slowly building in the last few weeks was threatening to spill over and I struggled to keep my libido in check.

"The restaurant is close by, your mom said it was one of your favorites."

"Owl n Thistle?" I asked, excitedly when we turned onto the familiar street. They had the best burgers.

"Yep," Jasper smiled and all thoughts of physically harming any and everyone who so much as looked at him disappeared.

Once we had parked, we walked hand in hand to the restaurant which was bustling with conversation and good food.

"Welcome to Owl n Thistle," the young hostess greeted us.

"A table for two, please," Jasper said and I'm surprised the girl's knees didn't give out. I smirked as I held him tighter as she gathered our menus and led us back to a small table in a dark corner.

"Your server will be right with you," the hostess told us before leaving to go back to her post at the front.

"So what's good here?" Jasper asked me.

"Everything," I deadpanned, "Seriously. I recommend the Shepherd's pie, you can't go wrong there."

"That sounds delicious," he said, looking over the menu.

"Hi there, my name's Laura and I'll be your server this evening. Can I get you two something to drink?" our server Laura said when she approached our table. She looked to be in her early thirties and had a small baby bump.

"I'll just have a beer, whatever you have on tap," I said, looking to Jasper.

"I'll have the same," he told her and she turned to go grab our drinks.

"You look absolutely stunning tonight, have I mentioned that? I feel like I don't tell you that nearly enough," Jasper told me, nearly setting me ablaze with his fiery gaze.

"Thank you," I blushed, "You make me feel beautiful, just in the way you look at me. Not that I have major confidences issues, it's just nice to feel wanted sometimes and you do an amazing job at that," I admitted.

"Well my dear, you are most certainly wanted, I can tell you that much. I always want you."

His double entendre was not missed by me at all, but the moment was broken by Laura dropping off our beers.

"Ready to order?"

"Oh, yes. I'll have your Shepherd's pie."

"Excellent choice," Laura smiled, writing his order down on her notepad before turning to me, "And for you miss?"

"I'll have the Guiness Beef Stew," I said, handing her our menus. Jasper reached over the table and weaved his fingers through mine and I smiled widely at him.

"Newlyweds?" Laura asked and I blushed.

"Oh, um, no," I stammered.

"Oh I'm sorry, it's just that you two look so adorable together; so in love that I immediately assumed you were married."

"It's quite alright," Jasper told her and she left us once again.

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"That was a wonderful meal," I sighed as we left the restaurant, "Ready to head home?"

"You don't think the date is over already do you?" Jasper said as we walked back to the lot where the car was parked.

"There's more?"

"Of course. I booked us a room at a small inn on Mercer Island."

"You did? So you thought you were getting lucky tonight, hmm?" I teased, slipping my arms around his waist. Jasper kept walking us in the direction of the car and held me tightly before giving me a quick kiss on the mouth.

"Well, I admit that I was hoping that I would be able to make love with you tonight, darlin', but I'll be more than content to just have some time alone with you."

His words ignited a fire in my core and I felt my skin flush. I hugged Jasper's body tighter to me and whispered in his ear, "Then what are we waiting for?"

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**A/N: I'm pretty sure chapter nine will be ready for posting by next week, but just bear in mind that I am in college and my schedule has not be especially nice to me this semester. FanFiction is basically a hobby, so please be patient if I have to go a few weeks between chapters. I had these eight chapters pre-written and I'm now finishing up chapter nine so anything beyond that is kind of a toss up. Hope you can be patient with me!**


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I own nothing.

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**Chapter Nine**

**BPOV**

"Here are your room keys, check out time is noon tomorrow," the sweet old lady told us as we checked into the Inn. She smiled at me as my head rested on Jasper's shoulder and I returned her smile. I tried not to think of all the things I would be doing to Jasper once we got up to our room, especially with this lady present. It just didn't seem right. But once Jasper had the keys in his hand, I nearly dragged him up the stairs.

"She said it was the last room on the right," he said to himself as we reached the second floor landing, a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. Wordlessly he unlocked the door and motioned for me to walk in first. Peeking in, I was immediately in love. It was a small inn, and the decorating was simple but elegant. Rich earth tones accented the furnishings and I mental note to make use of the enormous Jacuzzi tub in the bathroom at my earliest convenience.

I was standing by the large king sized bed taking everything in, when I felt Jasper approach. He slipped his arms around my waist and pulled me tight against his chest. I felt my hair being gathered and thrown over one shoulder and I sighed aloud as Jasper's lips came in contact with the bare skin left in its wake.

"Jasper…," I moaned as I turned myself around in his arms to face him. My hands, resting at the place where his shirt and jeans met, made their way up his chest, taking the fabric with them. When he was free of his shirt, I wound my hands into his hair and brought his lips down to mine in a searing kiss. Somewhere in the back of my mind I registered that he was removing my shirt as well, but I was too far gone to really think too much about it. I relished in the way his back and arm muscles moved and constricted in order to lift me up and wrap my legs around his body.

"The bed," I gasped as I broke the kiss for a moment.

"I was headed there darlin'," Jasper teased, walking a few steps and gently laying me down on top of the soft comforter. He knelt at the bottom of the bed and removed my shoes one by one, then my pants joined the pile. As Jasper crawled back up the length of my body, he paused at my panty line and trailed kisses in a line from there, up my stomach, between my breasts, then finally my lips.

"I love you so much, baby girl," he told me, his voice wavering for a moment with emotion.

"I know, honey, I love you too. More than you know," I whispered, "Make love to me, please."

Jasper smiled before kissing my lips once more, pulling away to remove his pants and boxers leaving him completely naked before me. I made no attempt to hide my blatant ogling of him and when he noticed, he simply smirked at me.

"These need to go," he said huskily of my bra and panties.

"Off," I panted, "Take them off."

Not a moment later, my bra was flying somewhere else in the room and my underwear was being shimmied down my legs.

"So damn beautiful," Jasper murmured as he took in my uncovered form, resting his weight on his arms over me.

"You're not so bad yourself," I smiled, "Touch me, Jasper."

"With pleasure…"

"Oh…," I gasped, as I felt Jasper's fingers graze over my entrance. He stroked me for a few moments, before inserting a finger, then two, effectively turning me into a quivering mess.

"Jasper…," I moaned, "I need you."

"All in due time, darlin'."

Jasper sped up his movements and my breath caught in my throat.

"Oh fuck…," I panted, "Jasper…shit…ohh yeah. I'm gonna come!"

"Yeah?" he asked cockily, applying more pressure on my clit, "Come for me baby, come on my fingers."

"Shit," I moaned, "Yes, I'm…I'm coming!"

"That's it darlin'…," Jasper growled as I rode out my high.

"Shit…," I breathed, gasping for air, "You're so damn good at that."

"Thanks, baby," he chuckled, positioning his rock hard member at my entrance. I needed him so bad. I slid my hand around to the nape of his neck and pulled his lips down to meet mine, swallowing our collective groans as he pushed into me.

"Damn, baby," Jasper groaned as he pulled almost all of the way out of me before pushing back in, "You feel so good."

"Oh fuck," I panted, ghosting my hands over the planes of Jasper's muscled back. The feeling of his back moving beneath my hands was incredibly erotic and sensual, "I'm so close already. Shit…ungh, how can you make me so damn good?"

"Oh yeah baby," Jasper nearly growled, "I love you so fucking much."

"You're going to make me come baby…," I panted.

"Do it," Jasper grunted, "Come on my cock darlin'," he said, speeding up his thrusts.

"Oh!" I gasped as I felt his fingers apply sweet pressure to my clit a moment later, "Oh shit, I'm…I'm coming!"

"Oh Bella!" Jasper exclaiming as my orgasm fueled his own, I moaned at the feeling of his seed filling me. Jasper reluctantly pulled out of me and rolled us over so that I was laying blissfully on his toned stomach. I nestled my head under Jasper's chin and snuggled into his warmth as he lazily ran his hand through my hair.

"I'm the luckiest man alive," he murmured after a moment of silence.

"And why is that?"

"I've got the most beautiful woman in my arms," he replied, kissing the top of my head, "And by some miracle she loves me like I love her."

At his words, I positively melted in his arms and turned my head up to meet his loving gaze, "I've never loved anyone the way that I love you. Not ever. You make it so easy for me to love you Jasper. Breaking down in front of your ranch was the best sort of divine intervention that could have ever happened."

I pushed myself up with my arms so that I could properly kiss Jasper's mouth and things quickly grew heated once again.

"As good as this feels, do you want to move this into the bath?" Jasper murmured against my lips.

"Mmm, you…naked and wet? I approve."

"Stay here baby, I'll get the water started," he smirked, kissing me once before walking into the en suite bathroom naked as the day he was born. Oh yeah, I stared.

I distantly heard the bath water begin running and I curled up in the blankets until Jasper walked back out into the bedroom.

"Our bath awaits, my dear," he smiled, scooping me up in his arms.

"I can walk you know," I teased him.

"I know," he answered, leaving no room for arguments.

Jasper set me down straight into the deliciously warm water and I stretched my erotically aching muscles in the giant tub.

"Aren't you going to join me?" I asked.

"I wanted this to be about you," he said, kneeling next to the tub. I leaned forward and pulled his lips to mine, nearly yanking him in the tub myself.

"I want to share this with you," I whispered, "I want to feel your body pressed against mine."

"Well, in that case you don't have to ask me twice," he replied, smirking. I scooted forward and relaxed into his body once he was settled behind me.

"Mmm, I love you," I spoke, my words coming out sort of slurred due to my extreme relaxation.

"As I love you baby."

After bathed with only a few less than innocent touches, we dried off and fell back into bed where we made love again slowly and sweetly.

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The next morning, Jasper and I reluctantly left our little cocoon as we had to check out of the inn and head back to my parent's house. Our flight back to Texas was leaving this afternoon and we wanted to spend some more time with everyone before we left.

I had already taken our two bags out to the rental car and I sat in the passenger seat, waiting for Jasper to check us out and join me. I smiled from where I was seated as I saw him exit the beautiful inn and make his way towards the car. He was just so perfectly handsome, and all mine. Just before he reached the car, I saw him glance at his phone to check a text message and I saw the same confused expression as the other day in the hospital. I didn't give it much thought at the time, but now I was a little curious.

When Jasper was seated in the driver's seat, I turned towards him.

"What's wrong baby?"

"This text message…I just…don't know what it means. It's from Olivia," he told me, "She sent me another one the other day at the hospital, but I just deleted it and cast it off."

"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked him.

"I just didn't want to worry you baby, your nephew was about to get released from the hospital…we had other stuff going on. That's all."

"Well, what did the texts say?"

"They said, _Jasper, there's something important that we need to discuss. I'm sorry I haven't reached out sooner, but if you could meet with me, I would really appreciate it._"

"What the hell does that even mean?" Jasper sighed, running his hands through his hair.

"Do you want to meet with her?" I asked him, hesitantly, unsure of what his answer would be.

"No, I really don't."

"Well, what could she possibly want to speak with you about?" I pondered, "And why now? What could be so important?"

"I have no idea. We've been over for so long, what could she possibly want to speak with me about _now_ of all times?"

"Maybe you should just hear her out?" I suggested, barely believing the words coming out of my mouth.

"I should?" Jasper turned towards me like he couldn't believe it either.

"I trust you and your feelings for me, Jasper. If you want to meet with her, I'm not going to be a bitch about it and try and control you. I can't stand relationships that are like that. I love you and I know that you love me too. If you want to meet with her to put a stop to all of the wondering, it's fine with me."

"You're amazing you know that?" he smiled, kissing my cheek. I watched as he typed out a quick message to Olivia letting her know that they could meet tomorrow at someplace called Southern Comfort to talk. A moment later she replied with her thanks and her confirmation that she would be there.

"All set?" I asked after he stowed his phone back in his pocket.

"Mhmm," he said, grinning lazily over at me as he started the car and maneuvered out of the parking lot. I held our hands together over the center console throughout the duration of our drive back to my parent's house. Every so often at a red light, Jasper would bring our intertwined hands up to his lips for a kiss and I melted further each time. He had no idea how much he owned me completely.

A smile that threatened to split my face in two spread over my face when we pulled into the driveway. Oliver was running around in the front yard and Michael was sitting on the steps of the porch watching him with a smile. When Oliver noticed us in the driveway, he immediately changed course and sprinted in our direction.

"Auntie Bewwa!" he yelled as he came closer. I threw my arms out to try and get him to slow down. His legs were fine, but his arm was still in a cast and if he was anything like his aunt, it was just a matter of time before he tripped and fell on it.

"Hey buddy," I smiled, scooping him up in my arms, "I missed you."

"I missed you too," Oliver said, kissing my cheek. I swear sometimes this little boy made my ovaries go into overdrive. Children were definitely in my future. And the idea of children with Jasper was becoming more and more appealing.

"Hey little man!" Jasper called out, walking around from the driver's side.

"Jassy!" Oliver cried out, throwing himself over into Jasper's arms.

Michael laughed aloud as he walked over to where we were standing.

"I've been replaced," I told him.

"What can I say?" Jasper chuckled, "The kids love me."

"Yeah yeah, let's go see Mom and Dad…that is, if your giant head can fit through the door," Michael teased. I let out a loud laugh at his words. I was so glad my boyfriend and brother got along so well.

"Jassy doesn't have a big head Daddy. See? It the same as yours," Oliver threw in innocently.

"I know buddy," he laughed as we walked in the front door.

"Hello my babies!" my mom loudly greeted us as we walked into the kitchen where she was making lunch, "I'm making chicken salad, is that alright?"

"Sounds great mom," I smiled, giving her a hug.

"How was your date?" she asked me, smiling at Oliver playing with Michael and Jasper across the room.

"It was perfect, really," I gushed, "I love him so much."

"I could tell from the moment you two walked into the hospital waiting room. Even though you were so worried about Oliver, you still looked at him like I look at your father after all these years."

"Hey there Bells," my dad said as he entered the kitchen. I crossed the room and kissed his cheek, snuggling into his trademark fatherly embrace.

"Hey daddy."

"How was your night?" he asked somewhat awkwardly. I couldn't blame him knowing what Jasper and I were up to after our date.

"It was great," I answered, "I hate that we have to leave you all though."

"Are you sure you can't stay a few more days?" Mom asked hopefully. I shook my head apologetically.

"I left in such a rush that I left a lot of work for my assistant. He's very capable, but I do feel bad for leaving him with so much. I'm sure Jasper and I can work out something soon so that we can come back for a longer visit. Right Jasper?"

"Of course. Or may you all can come down to Texas?" he offered and my mother positively beamed.

"That would be great," she replied.

"What time is your flight?" Dad asked us.

"3:00," I said glancing at the clock over the stove and saw that it was approaching noon, "We'll probably take off for the airport in about an hour so that we can get through security."

"Well lunch is ready, so dig in everyone!" Mom announced, placing a bowl of chicken salad on the kitchen island.

I grabbed the standard croissants from the cupboard and pulled a few out. Without giving it a second thought, I prepared plates for myself and for Jasper.

"Baby, would you like some chips?" I asked.

"Sure, darlin'."

When I handed him his lunch, I heard Michael snickering.

"What?"

"Already a kept man, Jasper?" Michael teased. I elbowed him in the side and he doubled over laughing and coughing at the same time.

"I don't mind," Jasper said with a smile, "I like that Bella wants to take care of me. I want to take care of her too."

"Yeah," I blurted childishly, sticking my tongue out at my brother, causing Oliver to giggle.

"Come on little man," I said, "Let's get you some lunch."

Oliver slipped his little hand into mine and I helped him get the chicken salad onto his plate. Michael helped him carefully carry the plate to the kitchen table while I went to the fridge and poured him some juice. When I returned to the table, I moved to sit in the chair next to Jasper, but he gently pulled me down to sit on his lap. I blushed but Jasper kissed my cheek and held me close.

Together, we ate with my family with pleasant and companionable conversation. When we got up to wash our dishes, I began to feel more and more reluctant to leave home. Sure, I was an adult with my own life in Texas, but what child didn't love returning to their childhood home?

After I had put my dishes away in the cabinet, my dad followed me up to my room as I went to gather up my things.

"So Bells," Dad began, "Is Jasper really treating you well?"

I rolled my eyes, but smiled and answered, "Yes Daddy. He is amazing to me. I love him."

"Well, you know, if he does anything to hurt you, just say the word…," he trailed off.

"Daddy! I can assure you that you will not need to tap into your cop skills with Jasper. He's a good man."

"Okay, okay," he said, throwing his hands up with a smile. I threw some clothes back into my bag and turned back around to face him.

"I miss you Bells."

"I miss you too Dad. I know you and Mom hoped that I would eventually move back here, but I'm really happy in Austin."

"I see that, I do. It's just not easy having your baby girl living so far away. You'll understand when you have children of your own."

Jasper then poked his head in the room with a sexy grin, "All packed up darlin'?"

"Yep, all set."

"Oliver colored a picture for you, he wants to give to you," he told me and I melted.

"Aw, okay, I'll be right down," I replied as Dad picked up my bag and walked with me downstairs.

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**Olivia POV**

I tried to subdue the butterflies in my stomach as I read Jasper's text message. He actually agreed to meet with me. I was nervous and terrified all at the same time. I sat in my car resting my head against the steering wheel as I sat on Main Street outside of my parent's drug store. They had finally convinced me to do the right thing, but it was so damn scary.

"Don't be a coward, Olivia," I muttered to myself as I typed out a quick response back.

Sighing, I cranked up the car and maneuvered out into traffic. I got my nerves under control as I approached the red stoplight not noticing the truck barreling towards me head on.

I glanced up, and then everything went black.

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**A/N: Sorry to introduce this new plot line and then leave you hanging, I really am! I have the next chapter mapped out, but it's just a matter of getting the time to sit down and type it out. Being in college sucks sometimes, haha Thanks for reading!**


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